The Golden Thread
by Nox-light
Summary: What if it wasn't Vegeta but Trunks being possessed by Baby? Will our prince be able to sacrifice his own son in order to save the planet? Or will the Bond between Trunks and Goten be strong enough to rescue our purple-haired wonder? Yaoi in later chapters.;) New chapter up!
1. Coming Home

**What if it wasn't Vegeta being possesed by Baby but Trunks?**

**How will the prince react, when he has to defeat his own son to rescue the planet?**

**Will he be able to do it? What will Goten do? Will the bond between the friends be strong enough to save our favourite purple-haired wonder?**

**Find out in my new story!**

**PS: I do NOT own any of the characters, they still belong to Toriyama-san, sadly.**

**This is my first fic in english, so please forgive minor mistakes. I'm actually german, you see? But I love writing in english, so...Have fun! Read and review, please.;)**

„Look Grandpa! It's the earth!"

"If you want me to look at it Pan, you got to let me see it!", Goku complained.

When Trunks glanced over his shoulder he sighed in exasperation. Pan was jumping up and down in front of the window so excitedly it was impossible for Goku to get a proper view. He gave up on this attempt though when he received an involuntary punch from his excited Granddaughter.

Trunks turned to the control panel again, changed the flying mode to autopilot and joined Pan and Goku, who were still wrestling for the best viewing position.

"Wow, it feels so good to see our good old planet again", Goku said and Pan nodded enthusiastically. "I can't wait to get there and see Mom and Dad and all the others again", she said. Trunks couldn't miss the longing sound of her voice and smiled mildly.

"Is it just me or did time go by incredibly fast?", Trunks asked the other two and couldn't take his eyes off the little blue planet that was slowly getting bigger, thanks to the enormous speed of their spaceship. Just the sight of his home planet filled him with a warm feeling of anticipation. He couldn't believe it had been a whole year since they'd left and was really looking forward to see his family and friends again.

Gokus eyes were fixed on the planet as well reminiscently. "A whole year…", he said, picking up Trunks' thoughts. "We were so busy all the time it really did fly by. I wonder how everybody's been."

There was a moment of silence amongst the three of them as they were all lost in their own thoughts about the journey that was about to end and the homecoming that lay ahead of them.

"But we have SO much to tell them! I have to make sure to tell everybody about the great things I've done", Pan broke the silence and Trunks raised an eyebrow meaningfully.

"Oh yes, of course, we owe it all to you Pan", he sneered and exchanged looks with Goku who was obviously trying very hard to not burst out laughing.

"Hey, it was ME who got that Dragon Ball on that awful desert-planet, and ME who saved Trunks from that General Ryudo when he transformed him into a metal plate!", Pan pouted and put her hands to her hips. Trunks and Goku raised their arms in mocking defence. Trunks thought it wiser not to point out to Pan that those were actually the two examples of how Pan got into trouble and they ended up finding a Dragon Ball by surprise while actually looking for her…

"Yeah, yeah, of course Pan! Whatever you say! I'll make sure I won't tell anybody about all the times you cried though…", he muttered under his breath but when he saw Pans menacing scowl he just had to laugh and received a blow to the stomach for that from the young girl. "We all did an amazing job out there, that one's for sure", Gokus voice sounded unusually serious and ended the teasing between the two younger Saiyajin.

"Yeah, we had some pretty close calls…", Pan mumbled and bit her lip. She looked troubled which wasn't surprising after everything they'd been through.

'Close call' was one underestimation, Trunks thought and nodded slowly. "I just can't get that Baby-Mutant out of my head…" He was speaking more to himself then the others now. Ever since their departure from M2 he had been thinking about that invention of Dr. Mu's and how they'd just SO close averted a universal catastrophe. Even though it hadn't been fully evolved the time it was freed of his tank, it was already an immensely powerful enemy that was designed to withstand high pressure, asteroid-blows, extreme heat and radiation… extreme circumstances, summing it up, that one was confronted with travelling through space…it was already able to destroy whole galaxies in his infant state. Trunks didn't even dare to imagine what Baby would be capable of if he'd get another chance to mere his power by overtaking someone like Dr. Mu again, who had clearly been under Baby's orders, though he obviously didn't know that at the time. Trunks had a little more information on that one though, thanks to the robots on M2, who'd granted him entrance to Dr Mu's Main-Database. He'd merely skimmed the Data before putting up the virus to the computer that shut down the energy-supply, but it had been enough to make him shiver with dread, imagining that horrible creature.

"How could anybody even think of constructing something like that? Dr. Mu would never have been able to control that thing one's it would have reached it's complete form. It's this kind of mental genius that struck Dr. Gero down and he was making the same mistake with a hundredfold bigger outcome", Trunks burst out. "It's the Cyborgs, Cell and Boo all over again. Put those four power-levels together and we're not even close to what we're dealing with here"

Goku eyed the young man very closely. Trunks wasn't one to exaggerate things and the look on his face was dead serious. He knew that look very well from Vegeta and never before had the resemblance of father and son been that obvious to Goku before.

He hadn't been able to follow Trunks explanation of what Baby really was but that didn't matter. According to Trunks it had been in an infant stadium when it attacked them on M2 and its power level had already reached Majin-Boos after the second transformation. Goku had always had an excellent memory of power levels, which had proven to be very useful on countless occasions. Being a Saiyajin it was, how Vegeta every so often reminded him of painfully obvious in their endless battles and spars back on earth, in his nature to accept any challenge to fight, to confront any enemy, to be pushed to his physical limits, but THAT one was one enemy that was better put off at the routes.

Luckily they had been able to end it once and for all on M2, thanks to Trunks discovery of the secret lab, that had been rumoured amongst the robots inhabiting the planet. If it hadn't been for him, Dr. Mu would have fulfilled his plans undisturbed.

Being Bulmas son, naturally Trunks knew a lot about technology and science yet on this journey he had been amazed to learn just HOW smart that boy was. He found himself gaping in aw when he watched Trunks handling the controls or repairing parts of the huge Spaceship that he had never even SEEN before, let alone knew what they were there for just like that. When he asked Trunks what exactly he was doing he wasn't able to follow his speech after a few seconds. When he was talking about his work, his eyes glittered with enthusiasm and excitement and he could forget everything around him, just the way Bulma did.

He definitely took after his mother a lot.

Luckily he had not inherited her temper though…, Goku thought.

A shrill beeping ripped him harshly out of his thoughts and according to her expression Pan experienced the same drawback to reality. Trunks however was grinning brightly and when he spoke, his voice sounded excited. "All right Guys, time to get seated, we're about to land. Welcome back to earth!"

The doors of the spaceship had barely opened when Trunks heard a delighted cry and was nearly knocked over by Goten, who gave him a rib-cracking hug.

"Hey Buddy, welcome back! It feels like you've been away for ages!"

"Goten! It's so good to see you man", Trunks answered and hugged his best friend back.

It was an overwhelming feeling to see his best friend again; they'd never been apart from each other that long before. They looked at each other and he saw his own emotions mirrored in the black-haired Saiyajins eyes.

"Nice to see you too, Son", Goku laughed but got no reaction from his youngest son whatsoever, since he and Trunks were now doing some weird homecoming dance. Goku sighed and couldn't help but smile at the two teens. It was touching to see the two of them together again, they'd been best friends ever since they were kids and had obviously missed each other a lot. As if she'd been picking up his thoughts he heard Bulma say: "Well, I guess the Siamese twins are united again. One could really get jealous, you know? As your mother it should be my privilege to greet my son first", she pouted, but when she got no reaction from her son she gave a defeated sigh.

"Give it up Mom, that's one fight you've lost a long time ago. Goten's been acting like a puppy that lost its master for the last couple months", Bra added and smiled. The friendship between Goten and Trunks was legendary, nothing could tear the two of them apart.

"Mother, Bra!" Trunks smiled broadly as he caught sight of his family. It sure felt

good to see them all again, he thought. They had obviously not changed at all.

"Welcome back, Trunks. I really missed you", Bulma said softly and hugged her son, then eyed him closely from head to toe as if checking if he was alright. Then she gave him a warm smile. "You look great. Actually I've been quite worried sometimes, but obviously Goku took good care of you all."

"Of course, you know me Bulma", Goku greeted the old friend and only now Trunks caught sight of his father, who was standing apart from the group as usual. When their eyes met he gave a very small smile.

"Hey Son. It's been quite a while, eh?"

"It sure has", Trunks agreed happily. He'd never had imagined his father being there to greet them as well.

"You look changed, that trip with Kakarott has obviously done you some good", Vegeta smirked. "Ready to proof it?"

Trunks eyes lit up in anticipation. He knew that this was his father's idea of a proper welcome and couldn't wait to show him the progress he'd made on this journey.

"You can bet. We'd better take that one out in the field though, I wouldn't like to restrain myself to that tiny gravitation chamber", the purple-haired young man added and flashed a cheek grin.

Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "Now you're talking boy", he growled appreciatively. The two of them exchanged a short, mutual nod and in a split of a second, they were gone.

"I just can't believe those guys…", Bulma groaned, shielding her eyes against the sun and watched her husbands' and son's outlines getting smaller on the horizon.

Goku laughed and clapped her back sympathetically. "Trunks can't as much as take a break here. Vegeta sure has strange welcoming-habits.", he agreed, "That's one guy that will never change."

Goten smiled. "Knowing Trunks, he was looking forward to that fight as much as Vegeta was. I swear, the two of them are SO alike it's scary sometimes."

"I'll second that…", Goku replied, thinking of all the occasions in which he'd had that exact thought during their journey. "So, they won't show up again that soon, I guess… Bulma, you got anything to eat, by any chance? I'm starving."

Bulma burst out laughing: "Talking about guys that will never change…come on in, then! You have to tell us everything!"

**So? What do you think? You liked it? This is merely the opening, the next chapter will be up really soon. Thx for reading, would love to know what you think about it.;)**


	2. One hell of a welcome

**Hey there.^^ Thanks for the review, I really apprecciated it.:) :) There are, as you may have noticed, minor changes in the story: Baby never met Goku, Trunks and Pan on Pital and possessed Trunks there but was destroyed in his Tank on M2. At least, that's what our heros think.;) **

**Here comes the next chapter and this is going to be a pretty long one. I hope you like it, it's one of my favourites so far. Read and enjoy!**

"Now, THAT was something", Trunks heard his father say in a, what appeared to be, mildly impressed voice.  
He consented to merely nod in agreement, since he was breathing way too hard to give a proper reply. He glanced around and noticed that the former mountainous area was now merely a wide-spaced, empty plain with several huge cracks ripping through the rocky landscape.

Since it would have released too much energy, they had not transformed to Super-Saiyajin.  
Probably the right call…, Trunks thought and wiped traces of sweat from his forehead.

"The Landscape sure looks changed…", he panted as a reply to Vegetas remark.  
Naturally, his father hadn't gone easy on him at all, so Trunks had to push himself to his limits and beyond to stand a chance. So obviously there had still been some enormous energy releases, which would explain the pulverized rocks.  
Turning Super would have vaporized the entire area in a 50 miles circuit, including the outskirts of West Capitol. His mother would've killed them both in that case, Trunks thought anxiously. She could be some scary woman…

It'd been worth the effort though and he'd really made some progress in that one year. He hadn't even realized this during the journey, but was very glad that he obviously improved his fighting to a level his father was satisfied with. Knowing his fathers pride and attitude, any lack in training would've had bitter consequences.  
He was ripped out of his thoughts when he heard his father land right in front of him.

"That Journey with Kakarott obviously got you out your sloppy routine, as I expected. Good for you."  
He helped his son up and pulled him into a very short hug. It lasted less than a second, nevertheless Trunks was completely overwhelmed by this unusual sign of affection. It were moments like these that showed Trunks that his father did care about him and that he'd missed him just like he had missed his father.

Naturally neither Vegeta nor Trunks would ever say this out loud seeing as Trunks inherited a good portion of Vegetas reclusive attitude. He was a way more outgoing, communicative person then his father of course, whose distaste of any 'human behaviour' was legendary, yet just like Vegeta he would never allow himself to appear weak by showing deep emotions in front of others.

"Well then", Vegeta turned quite suddenly and gave a short glance over his shoulder "We better get going, or your mother'll kill us both."

Trunks flashed a small grin and followed his father who'd already set off for CC.  
"So she didn't change a bit, did she?"

"You didn't really expect her to?" Vegeta scoffed. "That's one stubborn woman if there ever was one…", he growled and Trunks couldn't help laughing out loud hearing the pout in his father's voice.  
It was amazing how Bulma was so intimidating at times, for example when she had organized a get-together like today and them turning up too late, even the prince of all Saiyajin shrunk before her.  
It sure felt pretty good to be home again, he thought.

* * *

When they arrived at Capsule Corp. Trunks parted his father to check on the spaceship.  
They didn't have the time earlier to check the systems before docking it back on the main-station, so he figured he'd better get it over with fast, before they forgot about it eventually.

Besides, he still felt a little shaky from that fight earlier and could use some calm-down before meeting everybody upstairs for the big welcoming-party. Obviously that feeling showed on his face since he heard his father calling after him:  
"Don't you dare take too long there, she's going to blame me for that."  
"I'll be there soon enough sadly", he shot back "That kind of stuff's just a piece of cake."

"So, to get us out there, we had to time precisely but actually…" Pan gave her Grandfather a dismissive glance "Grandpa sucked at it. I really thought I'd die in there because he can't count to three."

"Aw, that's a bit harsh Pan. I'm not good with this number-rhythm thing, but with my chorus we did pretty fine after all", Goku scowled.  
They had just recounted their adventure of Pan being caught in one of Dr. Mu's pet inventions, a Giant robot that swallowed its victims as dolls and used their energy for his systems.  
Gohan, Goten as well as Videl and Chi-Chi, Bulma and Bra were laughing so hard they didn't even hear Vegeta enter the room.

"That's SO like you again, Goku", Bulma said, her voice still trembling with laughter.

"To that, I agree", Vegeta remarked scornfully.

"Vegeta", Bulma turned around "I didn't know you were back." She craned her neck to look behind him. "Where's Trunks?", she gave him a threatening glare "Please don't tell me you oh so accidentally beat him to a pulp?"

Vegeta raised his eyebrows dismissingly "Relax Woman, he hung back to check up on something concerning the spaceship. Besides, it's not that easy to 'beat him to a pulp' as you phrased it so nicely", he added and there was the tiniest infliction of pride in his voice.

"Wow, that was as much a compliment one could expect from Vegeta", Goten said, though very quietly. He noticed Gohans eyebrow twitch in an half amused, half upset kind of way.

"Just like I thought, obviously with Kakarott in the lead of that journey problems appear out of nowhere. You obviously got many opportunities to fight." He glanced over to Goten.  
"It surely would've done YOU some good as well", he mocked the younger Saiyajin, but Goten was so used to his snide remarks that he merely smiled mildly and kept his reply to himself.

"Yeah, well" Goku said, and scratched the back of his head in his usual manner, "we really got into some trouble out there", he admitted. "But it was actually Trunks who took the lead of the journey pretty soon."  
He exchanged looks with Pan who, reflecting the journey, nodded in agreement.

"First of all, he was the only one who could navigate the ship", Goku explained. He shuddered when he thought of this complicated flying control panels, handles and knobs.  
"And second, since I shrunk back to this size he was the only one looking like an adult so…"

"I was the only one behaving like an adult, either", they heard Trunks amused voice from behind and turned around.

"Hey Buddy", Goten grinned, "Bulma was already worried, that you might've been knocked out as a special welcoming-gift from your Dad."

Trunks rolled his eyes and thought it better not to comment on this. She was always so worried about him he thought, but couldn't help smiling a little anyways. She was his mother after all; it was just natural for her to be worried about her kids. He dropped down on the couch beside Goten.

"Hey, you're bleeding man…", Goten said, grabbing Trunks arm to get a better look at his shoulder.  
"Huh?", Trunks looked down as well. There was a long, deep cut he hadn't even noticed before. Did that happen during the fight? He couldn't remember…  
"It's nothing", he shrugged it off.

"What did you mean by that?" Pan interrupted, who apparently hadn't listened to their discussion and threw Trunks a threatening glare.  
"You being the only one behaving like a grown-up? I am NOT a child and I surely didn't behave like one!", she put her hands to her hips in protest.

Not that discussion again, Trunks thought. He got up, poured himself a drink and replied:

"No offence Pan, but the two of you tended to get sidetracked all the time. At least one of us had to stay focused on the actual goal of our journey."

"'Stay focused' seems to be one of his favourite expressions…", Goku laughed as Trunks sat down on the couch again.

"Oh yes", it came from Bulma, Goten and Bra and the general tone was a mixture of amusement as well as exasperation.

"Gimme a break here…", Trunks mumbled, who really didn't like where this was going and felt rather uncomfortable. Goten merely winked at him playfully. 'Bad luck Man', this look said, 'You know it's true, anyways'.

"Speaking of getting sidetracked", Pan just couldn't let the topic go, "Thanks to whom did we have to stay at that hospital-planet for an entire week? Hm?"

"Oh yeah!", Goku jerked up like he was stung by a giant bee "Of all planets, a HOSPITAL planet? That's been one hell of a week…", Goku shuddered.

Everybody knew he hated hospitals, doctors and especially needles ever since his first fight with Vegeta after which he'd spent months in a hospital.

Trunks blushed a little and scratched the back of his head embarrassedly.  
"Yeah, well….Got me there", he had to admit and gave Goku and Pan an apologetic smile.

Bulma, Gohan and the others were exchanging confused looks.  
"You got Dad stuck on a hospital planet for a week?", Gohan laughed.

"Why? And what's even more interesting: How?", his younger brother added incredulously.

Trunks felt like a spotlight was directed at him and got a little defiant:  
"That was different, we had already collected all the Dragon Balls then, didn't we?"

Goku still scowled at him, so Trunks went on: "Come on Goku, they didn't do you any harm and all the services were complimentary…you ate for free", he added hastily, seeing Gokus confused expression, with an undertone that clearly said 'And that means a lot!'.

"That still doesn't explain why you were at a hospital for an entire week", Bulma spoke up and there was a concerned frown on her face.

"There he goes…", Pan muttered under her breath when she saw that excited glow in Trunks eyes that she got to know only too well during the year.

"Actually they had the most amazing technology up there, far ahead of everything we're developing right now at CC. I couldn't miss the opportunity to analyze it and they offered me free access to all the facilities, so…"

Seeing how everybody apart from his mother, who was listening attentively with the same excited expression her son showed, looked at him rather blankly, he stopped mid-sentence and looked around confusedly.

"No proper explanation, huh?", he smiled and wiped a strand of his hair back that kept falling in his face.

"Honestly Bulma, I had never known just how much a Tech-Freak Trunks is", Goku sighed and winked playfully at the young Saiyajin, who'd already opened his mouth to protest, but since he really couldn't deny this, simply sipped on his drink and raised an eyebrow warningly.

"It took you a whole year to figure THAT out?", Goten scoffed and received a sharp blow to his side from Trunks, sitting next to him.  
"Hey", the black-haired young man pouted and threw Trunks a reproachful look.

"Of course", Bulma said proudly, who obviously didn't notice that Trunks was really uncomfortable with everybody focussing on him. "Like mother, like son."

"Tss…", Vegeta sneered derisively, which was his first, well, contribution to the general conversation.

"Anyways, Mom I got to show you some of the data I gathered on Pital. Can't you guys just, I don't know, focus your attention on somebody else?" Trunks asked meekly, knowing that his father didn't approve of the amount of time Trunks spent in the lab, when he could rather be spending it in the training chamber instead. It was a topic his parents kept bickering about occasionally. Which was exactly why he really had to distract them from this topic, he had no intention whatsoever to listen to that discussion right now.

"And we got 'focus' again…", Pan muttered quite audibly which made everybody but Trunks, who rolled his eyes rather annoyed, snicker again.  
Now that was going to be one hell of a welcome…, he thought.

"Wow…it's like you are actually IN there…", Bulma whispered excitedly, peering through a small version of the electron microscope Trunks had studied and rebuilt on Pital.

"Those were exactly my words when I first saw it", Trunks replied.  
"This is amazing Trunks, it'll reform our whole company", Bulma beamed at her son proudly who gave a moderate nod in return.

"I closed a science-cooperation contract with them, so we're free to use their technology in every aspect of applied research", Trunks winked at his mother, "So the legal-department doesn't have anything to worry about."

"You're unbelievable", Bulma sounded quite impressed. "There you are collecting the Dragon Balls and you close the biggest Deal our company had had for decades at the drop of a hat."  
Trunks merely shrugged. "That's me…", he took a sip of his drink contemplatively.

"You can't be serious", a cheery voice behind Trunks said and he snapped out of his thoughts.  
"It's your first day back home and you are already thinking about work again?" That sounded playfully reproachful…

"Hey Goten", Trunks greeted, as the younger Saiyajin put an arm around his shoulders and squeezed him affectionately. "Come on, there's plenty of time for that later", he said and handed him a drink.  
"Guess you're right. Thanks", Trunks smirked and clinked glasses with Goten.

"Honestly Buddy", Goten shook his head uncomprehendingly, "You love technology waaaay too much, ya know?"  
He sounded a little hyped up, the purple haired Saiyajin noticed and chuckled. Goten obviously had had a few drinks…

Trunks got up and rubbed his eyes. He felt a little dizzy and had to blink twice to clear his vision. Without even noticing how time flew by he'd spent nearly two hours discussing and evaluating his research results with his mother. No surprise he felt a little shaky, he thought.

"One could really say that he LOVES robots…You know, when he was talking about the spaceship he said 'She' all the time…", Pan said to Bra in a quite carrying whisper.

Bra giggled. "Yeah…I wonder when he's going to introduce us to his self-manufactured girlfriend actually…"  
They rolled on the floor laughing. Trunks on the other hand wasn't the least amused by this and blushed heavily.

"Girls…", he scoffed with a disgusted expression.  
Obviously Pan was determined to annoy the crap out of him today, since she added:  
"Big words for someone who dressed like a girl himself once."

Trunks felt his body freeze at this sentence. Of course she now got everybody's undivided attention and he saw now how utopistic his wish had been, that nobody, especially Vegeta, would never hear this story.  
But obviously this was Pans revenge for him calling her a child so often…. This was a nightmare…

"I will kill you Pan…", Trunks groaned, though nobody but Goten heard him, who was obviously trying very hard to stifle his laughter.  
Pan cleared her throat: "Well, it was a brilliant plan, actually. There was this giant monster, Zunama, whom we had to lure out of the city…"  
Trunks sighed defeated, knocked back his drink, poured himself another one and silently accepted his fate…

"…though, the best part of it all was, that Zunama was still completely into 'Trunksette' when the disguise came off", Gokus words were nearly incomprehensible, since he was laughing so hard, but Trunks saw his fathers eyebrow twitch dangerously at the word 'Trunksette'. He would never let him hear the end of THAT for sure, Trunks thought grimly.

"Now, that's not fair Trunks. You got all the Girls in your company who absolutely adore you, and you go for a monster?" Goten laughed and earned a very dangerous glare from Trunks.

"Not just the girls though…" Bra chimed in a mocking sing-song voice.  
"That guy from accounting was undressing you with his eyes when I picked you up once. He wouldn't mind some…late shifts at the office, if you ask me."

"Which I don't remember doing", Trunks snapped "Why don't YOU try acting like a girl once? You got some dirty gab for a so called 'Lady'", he added disdainfully.

"Touché…" Goten smirked. "She's right though, you know? Remember that guy at the last world tournament?  
He obviously thought you were quite a Cutie as well." Goten burst out laughing and nearly fell off the couch, which Trunks wouldn't have minded at all…;

He sighed and dropped his head, defeated. How should he ever forget about THAT creepy guy? He never made sure he didn't do any serious damage to him after he was carried out of the stadium, completely knocked out…he might've gone a little too far there…

"'Cutie' or not, I could easily beat you up anytime…" he shot back, trying to save at least a little self-esteem, his expression an excellent copy of Vegetas most dangerous, intimidating glare.

"Oh relax Trunks", Goten said, "Merely pulling your leg here…"  
Since Trunks was always so serious and rational, occasions like these, where he got really embarrassed were pretty rare. Though he was so cute, pouting like this…, Goten thought and smiled mildly.

"See now, what I was talking about Chi-Chi? He can choose, uhm…well, whatever he wants obviously and still…", she made a hopeless gesture with her hand and didn't bother to finish the sentence.

Chi-Chi however nodded wisely. "Some sons we have…", she agreed.

Trunks had no idea whatsoever what the two of them were talking about, but Goten gave an exasperated groan.  
"If he'd spent half the time dating he spends in the lab…" Bulma went on, but Trunks finally catching on the hint, interrupted her instantly.

"I WORK all the time I'm not in the Lab!", he flared up. "Or in training! Honestly, what do you want from me?"  
He just had enough for one day, obviously he'd been THE topic of gossip, he got that much.  
But if he'd have to listen to anyone else talking about him like he wasn't even in the room any longer, he'd really give them some trouble.

"Yeah right…", Vegeta remarked scornfully "You spending time in training. Now that's news to me…"

Trunks heard a soft 'Ping' inside his head and knew that he should better keep his mouth shut from now on.  
He was boiling with rage as it was and had no intention whatsoever to get into a discussion with his father.  
Goten threw him a concerned look, he knew what was going on inside his best friend, but Trunks merely shook his head slightly, signalling he was in no mood to talk.

"Speaking of lost cases…" Bulma laughed. "If you spent half the time with the family you spend in training, you'd be such a great husband Vegeta. Sadly, it's not a perfect world…", she teased her husband playfully, who merely sniffed presumptuously.

Bulma got up and started to clean the table. "Mind giving me a hand Chi-Chi?"

The two of them picked up the empty bottles, plates and other leftovers from the party and went to the kitchen. Gohan and Videl took that as their sign to take their leave, said their goodbyes and followed Bulma and Chi-Chi.  
Probably to gossip a little more, Trunks thought with a grim expression.

He shouldn't even care about any of it, he tried to compose himself. Him having a proper knowledge of advanced technology had probably saved the entire universe after all, he thought bitterly and found himself engrossed in thoughts about Dr. Mu and his incredible inventions once again…

Goku, knowing the expression on the young man's face only too well, asked in an undertone:  
"That Baby-business really gives you a hard time, doesn't it?"

Trunks didn't answer. His lips were pressed so tightly together his mouth was merely a thin line and his usually bright blue eyes were overshadowed and dark, like a cloud blocking the sun on an else clear sky.  
Goku frowned in concern. Trunks seemed anxious, scared even.

Goten looked from one to another with a questioning look. "What is this? What are you talking about?"

"You made the right call Trunks", Goku said earnestly, ignoring his son's question, "Thanks to you we could destroy that bastard before he was able to start his rampage all over the universe. That was awesome!"

Trunks smiled tiredly. It was nice to hear these words, but he couldn't help wondering…

"Did I hear that correctly?", Vegeta hissed in a dangerously low voice and Trunks felt his whole body get rigid, like he was preparing for a fight.  
"You destroyed an enemy beforehand, rather than fighting him face-to-face?"  
Trunks took a deep breath and looked his father straight in the eyes.

His voice sounded reasonably calm when he replied: "Exactly."

Vegetas eyes were glowing with rage and his voice was very cold when he spoke:  
"You are SO like your mother sometimes, it makes me sick…", he snarled contemptuously.  
"It's like her building that control-device for the Cyborgs all over again. Is there any fighting-spirit in you at all? Didn't I teach you _anything_?"

Without even remembering getting up, Trunks found himself on his feet, locked in a glaring-contest with his father, their outraged expressions mirroring each others. It was an intimidating sight, and finally Goku understood what Goten had been talking about earlier, when he said Trunks could be so much like Vegeta it was scary…

"She was right then as I am right now. This has nothing to do with a spirit to fight, it was my responsibility to eliminate that creature for the sake of every living being in the universe ", Trunks hissed through gritted teeth.

"Hey, calm down, you guys!", Goku tried to relax the situation, but just got evil glares from father and son alike.

"I see him being stupid enough to do such a thing, but how come you didn't stop him, Kakarott?", Vegeta scorned, but before Goku could even reply, Trunks shouted:  
"Stupid enough? That beast would've destroyed the ENTIRE UNIVERSE and there would have been nothing we could do to stop him, you have no idea!"

Vegeta simply smiled coldly "Wow, that actually sounds quite tempting…What a pity I never got to know him, or better: he never got to know me", he smirked.

Suddenly Trunks got unusually calm, his eyes were so cold they seemed to be sending out ice sparks and an evil grin played around his lips that Goku had never seen on him before.  
Goten on the other hand knew that Trunks was on the edge of going ballistic. The atmosphere in the room was so explosive neither Goten nor Goku dared to interfere, they didn't even dare to move.

"Big Words, seeing as you weren't able to finish off neither the Cyborgs, nor Cell, nor Boo…" Trunks snarled, "Didn't Goku end up getting rid of the enemies that _got to know you_?" An awkward silence followed his words.

"What did you just say?", Vegeta whispered finally, his eyes turning green for the split of a second.

"There is no dignity in risking millions of lives just because fighting is so much _fun_", Trunks spat, "It's a sign of lunacy. You should know that by now, father"

Goten took a deep, sharp breath. Trunks had some nerve to talk back to Vegeta like that…what had gotten into him?

"Listen to you…", Vegetas voice was as cold as his son's, "Don't you have any pride? You're a Saiyajin, for God's sake!"

For the tiniest moment, there was an expression on Trunks face, which Goten had never seen before and surely would never want to see again…but before he could even take a better look the usual cold mask of inviolability had appeared on his face again.

He simply turned around and went to the door: "Yeah", he mumbled in a voice that didn't sound like his at all, "Unfortunately I am…"

With that he left and left an outraged Vegeta behind. Goten couldn't help shouting out:  
"Well done, Vegeta. He's just got back here, can't you give it a rest just for once?! You're unbelievable!", and he slammed the door behind him so hard, the pictures in the room fell off the walls.

**So, that's that so far. Pretty bad fight huh? As always, I'd love to know what you think. See you at the next chapter.^^**


	3. The aftermath of M2

**Hello dear readers, here I am with a new chapter.^^ **

**Thank you all for following the story so far and thousand thanks for the reviews.  
**

**:) :)  
**

**This chapter, as you will notice, contains a scene of the original DBGT Episode (22 for those who wanna look it up ;) ).  
**

**I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as much as I do and let me know what you think about it.^^ Quite curious about your opinion on this.  
**

**So then, after the big fight...  
**

* * *

"Really Vegeta, that was a bit harsh, don't you think?", Goku frowned, yet the stubborn prince didn't answer, apparently he hadn't even listened to him.  
Goku knew his friends' attitude only too well, yet this, he'd never had expected.  
Of course, knowing Vegeta, he hadn't expected him to be thrilled by the story of how they finished off Baby for good, yet actually humiliating his son like this, even questioning his dignity…He'd never seen such a hurt look on Trunks' face before and he felt the urge to stand up for the boy, whom he got to know very well during the past year and had always loved as much as his own sons.

"He made the right call", he repeated insistently, "None of us, neither you nor me, would've been able to stop that bastard once it's fully evolved. Ever!  
Sometimes you HAVE to act on behalf of the greater good. We're lucky Trunks figured that out before he could develop completely."

"Tss…", Vegeta hissed, finally facing Goku. "I hoped this time out in space with you would have some effect on him. It did, obviously, yet quite opposite to my expectations…or did you just get soft, hanging around with those two kids?", he sneered.

"Vegeta, you have an incredible son", Goku said and there was grim pride in his voice. "He's beaten Goten in both world-tournaments!  
As I watched him fight out there", Goku pointed to the window into the night sky, "I noticed that he's even surpassed Gohan, maybe even Piccolo!  
At his age! You must've put him through hell to achieve that! Seriously, like he said, WHAT do you want from him?"

Vegeta raised an eyebrow surprisedly. It was unusual to see Goku that upset, obviously he had triggered some nerve there.  
Plus, it had to be a bitter experience, to admit the victory of Vegetas son over both his, he thought smugly.

"His strength isn't the problem…", Vegeta growled, talking more to himself than Goku and looked out of the window thoughtfully.  
"I know he is an excellent fighter. It's his _attitude_ that annoys me…"

"What do you mean?", Goku asked.

Vegeta frowned, obviously looking for the right words to phrase his thoughts.

"He avoids fights, he doesn't _enjoy_ them like it would be natural for a Saiyajin. He is always looking for a middle-way, searching for a solution that suits everybody…trying to cause as little damage as possible, summing it up", he scoffed disgustedly.

Despite his bitter feeling, Goku had to smile a little. That really was just like Trunks, he had to admit.  
He was always so worried about everyone and everything.  
When Pan got lost on the first planet they had visited on their journey, he'd forgotten about the Dragon Ball completely, focused only on making absolutely sure nothing had happened to the girl.  
Thinking about it, he wondered where that characteristic of his came from, since admittedly neither Bulma, nor Vegeta were very emphatic, altruistic persons…

"He is exactly like that future brat. He CARES too much", Vegeta said and Goku found himself rather taken aback by this comparison. He hadn't thought about the Trunks from the Future for a very long time actually. He himself had never really compared the young man that had helped them in their fights against the Cyborgs and, well, their Trunks, the boy he'd known since he was born and whom he'd watched grow up to manhood, getting independent…

Yet, now Vegeta mentioned it, it was rather awkward just how similar those two were, seeing as they had completely different lives and living circumstances…  
The future Trunks had never even MET his father, yet the two of them, Trunks and Mirai, behaved exactly the same sometimes.  
That was weird, Goku thought…

"Actually", he said slowly after a while and Vegeta, noticing the unusual contemplative look on the younger Saiyajins face, raised his eyebrow curiously,  
"I think, that's his biggest strength...A good heart like his is rare and it's a miracle he…", he never finished that sentence, yet Vegeta, catching on the hint,  
narrowed his eyes warningly,"You should be proud of him", Goku insisted, facing Vegeta again.

"I AM proud of him", Vegeta growled through gritted teeth and threw him a dangerous glare, "Don't you ever dare question that, Kakarott."

Goku rubbed his head helplessly. Vegeta sure was one hell of a character.

"Wouldn't hurt him to hear that once in a while…", he muttered under his breath and gave a defeated sigh. There was just no way to talk sense into that guy…

* * *

The huge balcony overlooking the park surrounding Capsule Corporation with its spectacular view over West Capitol had always been Trunks favourite place since he was a child. This was where he went when he had to think things through, where he would take a break from training.  
Here he could relax and he could spend hours just enjoying the view…

After all these months travelling through the endless nothingness of space it felt so good to see all those lights, the cars in the streets,  
people rushing from one place to another.

He'd always loved just standing here, watching the people in the streets, imagining what they might be up to...

He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves. He felt his heartbeat slow down, the effect of the adrenaline rushing through his veins faded and he started to feel better with every second.

When he heard the glass-door slide open he whirled around and, recognizing who had followed him out here, smiled mildly. "Hey Goten", he greeted the friend.

"Are you checking up on me or something?"

The younger one smiled and leaned on the balustrade beside the older Saiyajin.

"Course I am. Somebody has to make sure you're not letting your frustration out on some innocent birds or blowing the house up or something", he teased the older one. "You ok?" he asked and there was concern in his voice.

"I'm fine, I guess…" Trunks sighed, "It was just too much today…I was already freaked out about everybody gossip about me, my life and what I do or don't do. You know how much I hate that."

"Hey, I can completely understand you lost your nerve there", Goten said and squeezed the older ones shoulder affectionately, "I would have exploded much earlier; actually, I was quite impressed you managed to stay that calm for so long."

The purple-haired Saiyajin even managed a small smile. "Guess you're right…Thanks Chibi."

The younger one smiled fondly. "Wow, I haven't heard that name in a while…" he said and Trunks raised his eyebrows warningly.  
"I would hope so", he joked. "That's my very special name for you and nobody else is allowed to use it."

"Nobody else knows it, so the chances are pretty slim."

"Yeah, that one's our 'little secret'", the purple haired winked.

Though the older one seemed to have lightened up he really couldn't fool Goten with his casual voice and his jokes. He knew the friend way too long and he knew Trunks merely tried to put a good face on the matter.

Seeing how much he admired his father, how he constantly tried to gain his respect, a fight like before tended to upset Trunks more than he'd ever admit, even to Goten;

They'd talked so often about it before and yet, he'd never understand why the older Saiyajin gave so much on his father's opinion, why he let him get to him like that…

Obviously his thoughts mirrored on his face and didn't go unnoticed by Trunks, who ruffled the younger one's hair playfully.

"Hey, I know that look. Don't worry so much Chibi, I'm fine. This hasn't been the first fight I've had with him and it surely won't be the last", he said.  
"I just…I never wanted him to find out about Baby, I knew he'd react this way…Though he'd actually take it THAT bad, I'd never have imagined…"

'Baby', Goten thought. That strange name again…

"Who is this Baby, anyways?" the question that had been bothering him for a while now finally burst out of him. "What happened up there?"

Trunks sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "That's a long story…"

He told Goten everything; how he'd learned about Dr. Mu's invention through the rumours which had spread amongst the robots on M2 which he'd met looking for the last Dragon-Ball on the Doctors home planet and his plan to let himself capture to gain access to 's secret laboratory; how he even had to deceive Goku and Pan to make sure he could carry out his plans undisturbed.

"That is SO like you again", Goten groaned. "Why do you always have to do everything by yourself? Dad would've understand, he would have helped you!"

"I just couldn't risk anybody finding out what I was up to" Trunks defended himself. "I figured the less they knew, the less Dr. Mu could pry out of them, you know?  
I couldn't completely fool your Dad, though. He knew that something was going on…"

"Yeah, he tends to have his bright moments…", Goten laughed. "So you found the lab. And you nearly gave my niece and father a heart-attack along the way, no biggie" he teased his friend. "Then, what happened?"

"Well, I confronted him with the fact that I knew about his secret and we followed him to his Lab…  
I guess he wanted to check how much damage had been caused, I'm not sure…" the purple-haired continued and rubbed his forehead rather irritated. "But then everything went wrong…"

Trunks still shivered with anger and dread, he still remembered every little detail of what had happened once they'd reached Baby's hideout…

_Goku and Pan had entered the lab first, closely followed by Dr. Mu and Trunks…_

_Though he'd seen the room before, it was still an overwhelming experience to him: _

_The Darkness, only occasionally lit by the flash of a lightning, reflected on the surface of the huge lake surrounding the platform where Baby's tank was, emitting an eerie green light._

"_Stop it!", Dr. Mu shouted. "Don't get any closer!" And he'd stumbled past Goku and Pan, who'd stopped dead in their tracks, obviously overwhelmed by the sight of the lab just as Trunks had been before._

"_Baby…" he staggered towards the tank and his voice was full of despair, panic. "My sweet Baby. I'm so sorry. Please forgive me for allowing them to see you. I didn't want to expose you to the eyes of these filthy creatures before you obtained your complete form."_

_It was a pitiful sight… Dr. Mu had seemed quite oblivious to the fact that Trunks, Goku and Pan were watching his every step. The fact that his secret had been revealed had obviously driven him out of his mind, Trunks thought._

"_I'm sorry Baby…I know how long you've been waiting. How frightened you must be in there." He'd reached the control-panel now and made some adjustments. Trunks narrowed his eyes suspiciously. What was the Doctor up to, now? There was no way he could rescue that little monster, he'd seen to that. _

"_Wh…What's that in the water?", Goku had asked, his eyes fixed on the tank. _

"_It…It looks like a robot…", Pan said and Trunks gave a short nod. _

"_You're close Pan. It's called Baby, an infant machine, created by Dr. Mu ; only he applied a restructuring method not used on any other robot on this planet. When that thing is full grown its power could surpass as all. Maybe even before then if he develops a workable body. There are still a lot of questions we don't have answers for."_

"_You got to be kidding. Can he really get that powerful?" Goku had asked doubtfully, eyeing the small creature._

"_How did a bunch of rotten Saiyajins reveal the secret of my Baby?" For the first time since they'd entered the lab the maniac doctor faced them instead of his precious creature. _

_Trunks had merely smiled coldly. "Even amongst robots, rumours can spread like fire", he'd hissed. "They told me where the main computer was, and I shut it off. It's over!", he'd spat, barely concealing the hatred in his voice._

"_But…", The Doctor turned to the control-panel again. "How could he do this?! Oh Baby, my beautiful Baby. Please wake up! Don't die! My Baby!" he hit a few keys and plunged his hands into the machine desperately, obviously trying in some way or another to fix whatever was wrong._

"_What did you do to him?!" he'd shouted and faced Trunks. "You animal!"_

"_Simple", Trunks had replied coolly. "I rerouted his life-support into the unit's plumbing system." Jets of water were shooting up like a gusher; obviously the energy system started to spin out of control, which was a good sign. A very good sign indeed... _

"_Your Baby will soon stop functioning. And then, we'll be safe."_

_The lightning flashes occurred more often now and they seemed to intensify. The whole atmosphere was tense and creepy…_

_ The Doctor was still fumbling with the devices in a futile attempt to save his precious creation._

"_If I can find the internal power-switch I can still redirect the power in time to save you", he rambled, panic getting the best of him._

"_Just like Ryudo said, Dr. Mu's sole aim is to control the entire galaxy", Trunks had explained to the other two and Pan frowned in concern. _

"_If he wants the whole galaxy, than he had those beady little eyes set on the earth, too." Obviously she'd only now recognized the whole dimension of horror this invention represented._

"_Of course he did."_

"_Who does this guy think he is?"_

"_He is just like every other villain out there, Pan", Goku said. _

"_Right. He's greedy", the purple-haired Saiyajin agreed. "That's why, while he continued with the research on Baby, he began mobilizing the older models of robots on this planet using a military style of control. It's all practice for the day he finally takes over the galaxy." _

"_How do you know all that?" Pan asked incredulously. _

"_I already had an inkling when we were on Ludo's planet. I was wondering what he needed all this energy for…So I started some investigations when we arrived here and the robots confided me in. Baby scares them as much as he scares us, because once he's developed completely they'd be useless. Which is as worth as death to our kind."_

_Trunks narrowed his eyes grimly. _

"_It's good we found this before he finished it. I wouldn't have liked to stare that thing down…"_

_ Dr. Mu didn't pay their conversation much attention; he still tried his best to save Baby, begging him, motivating him…Trunks almost felt sorry for him. If there was one person in this room who knew what it meant to watch an invention fail, who could understand that, even though Baby was just a machine, one could develop a close bond with superficially emotionless creatures, it was himself. For the first time ever he recognized how weird this behaviour must look to an outsider and it wasn't an altogether nice experience…_

_As if reading his mind Pan said: "I'm kind of feeling sorry for him…"_

"_It's too bad", Goku said. "I really wish I could've fought him, just once."_

_Trunks nearly doubled over; the older Saiyajin had to be kidding him; didn't he understand just HOW dangerous this creature was? Hadn't he made his point more than clear to them?_

"_Goku! Please do me a favour and try to stay focused."_

"_But I am focused", Goku grinned, scratching the back of his head. This reminded Trunks so much of his best friend that he couldn't help smiling_

_Goku was just like his father, Trunks thought. Did they ever think about anything but a good, healthy fight? Though he was a Saiyajin himself, he'd never understand this certain characteristic of their race._

"_I guess you're right", he sighed._

"_What do you think? Has this little guy stopped functioning yet?" Goku asked curiously and climbed onto Baby's capsule to get a better look._

"_Wow, look at that. Impressive", he said. "You can't turn his power back on for just a little bit?"_

"_Goku…"The purple-haired groaned. Was this all just one big joke to him, or what? How could he possibly be that careless?_

"_Oh Grandpa…"Pan shook her head dismissingly. _

"_Don't you dare…put your hands off Baby's capsule. You disgusting Saiyajin!" _

_And then the unbelievable had happened. Though his systems were turned off, though his breathing apparatus as well as the life-support systems were offline, Baby had awakened…_

"He was still alive?" Goten, who hadn't interrupted his friend once until now, asked incredulously. "How is that possible?"

"That's the point!" Trunks replied. "I don't know. I have no idea what went wrong. Did I make a mistake? Did Dr. Mu somehow manage to recharge him?  
Did I…Could I have done anything to avert this? I just don't know…." He buried his head in his hands in frustration.

Goten eyed the friend rather worried. He hadn't missed the fact that Trunks had not just _told _him what had happened. He'd relived every second, as if the pictures were burned in his mind, he had been _there_, back in 's lab, back on M2.

And finally Goten started to understand why Trunks was having such a hard time forgetting about the events on M2.  
He hated unsolved riddles; he hated not to know everything. It wasn't surprising he kept thinking about Baby and and knowing his best friend, he wouldn't come to terms with this until he'd solved the mystery.

"Dr. Mu was thrilled of course…" Trunks hissed. "His cursed creature wasn't dead after all. Everything I've done had been pointless. I failed to destroy him and we had to fight him after all. He was a strong enemy, mind you….but I think, the virus I've put in his system had at least weakened him…"

The young Saiyajin brushed a strand of his hair back again, took a deep breath and continued.

"Well, obviously we defeated him in the end otherwise I wouldn't be here to tell the story" he smiled. "Actually I was even a bit disappointed of how easy it was. He'd been so powerful, though he didn't know yet how to use his strength; I guess…It had just been too easy."

Goten scratched his head thoughtfully. Trunks could be so confusing at times. First he told him of how he really didn't want to fight Baby  
and when they were forced to do so, he complained about it being too easy?

"So what? You defeated him. The easier, the better, don't you think?"

"Yeah…I should be happy, shouldn't I?"

"So why aren't you?" Goten inquired.

Trunks merely shrugged. That was exactly the point…

"I don't know. I just have this stupid feeling that…"

"That what?"

Yeah, that what? The one inexplicable feeling that followed him ever since they'd left the secret lab on M2, the one thought that he couldn't shrug off, that haunted him every minute of every day, despite what Goku and Pan said:

"I just feel like this isn't really…the end of the story yet. That this has not yet been the end of Baby…"

* * *

**Well, I think we all know that this feeling isn't really that far fetched...**

**I hope you liked it and I'm looking forward to meeting you all next time. See ya and thanks for reading and reviewing.;) :)  
**


	4. Darkness Rising Part I

**_Here I am with a new chapter, it's a little Valentine's treat for you, beloved readers.;)  
So sorry for the long wait!_**

Since this chapter is preeeetty long I split it in two parts. Thank you SO MUCH for your support!  
I've gathered quite a community here, thats awesome. *hugs you all*

I'm really glad you enjoy this story so much and hope you'll like the next chapter as much as I do.:) The first scene is quite important for the story ahead, I'll refer to it a lot in later chapters.;) Nope, no spoiler alert, not at all.:)

Well, without further ado...Read and review.^^

* * *

_Trunks found himself in complete, thick darkness. He couldn't tell whether he was in a room or outside, there was no air, no smell, no noise…nothing…  
He could hear his own heartbeat, a hundredfold louder than usual in this deafening, unbearable silence…  
Trunks panted, didn't dare to move on, he felt like if he moved, he would be swallowed by this emptiness, be absorbed by it. _

_Yet, he knew, someone was waiting for him, he had to hurry…but where to? _

'_Afraid of the dark, are you?' _

_Trunks looked around. Whose voice was that? He wanted to call back but found that he had no voice. He screamed, he heard the sound inside his head, yet no sound escaped his lips. _

_He was…mute._

_He wasn't even able to tell whether he had a body actually…he felt so light, see-through, in some way immaterial…_

'_Afraid of the things you can't see, can't estimate, can't rationalize?' _

_The voice was barely a whisper, coming from every direction, it repeated itself endlessly, yet it was neither evil, nor pleasant…it was just there.  
But where? Where from? _

_Hesitantly, yet determined, he stepped forwards and in the same moment he could see a light, a reflection maybe, it vanished again after a split second.  
He made another step. There was the light again…_

_He was running now, the light leading the way, it got brighter, clearer…_

_Suddenly, Trunks stood in front of a gigantic…yes, what? Was it a window? A mirror? It was a solid, shiny surface, yet he could see…the outlines of people moving behind it…_

_He saw his own scared, intimidated reflection, couldn't recognize himself though. _

_He backed away, unwillingly, it was like this mirror was pushing him away, he wanted to run, run away from this weak, scared image of his.  
But when he turned around, he saw the way back was blocked by the same mirror, he was captured…_

_He turned again, facing the way onwards, there was someone waiting, there was something important ahead, he needed to get there! _

_The image changed, he saw a different 'version' of himself…_

_It was him, alright, yet with slight differences…_

_The Trunks in the mirror had several scars on his arms, he had a suspicious expression, when he smiled the smile did not exceed to his eyes.  
They were…empty, like this Trunks had seen hell… He saw the handle of a long, shiny sword strapped around the warriors back…that was weird…he had never had a sword…_

'_You know you can never live up to me…" the mirror image hissed gleefully._

'_I was the reason he came back to Mother. If it hadn't been for me, he would have left you. YOU mean nothing to him.'  
Trunks wanted to back away, he didn't want to hear those words, he didn't…_

_He tried to push the images away that tried to penetrate his mind, but they rushed over him like an enormous, all-destructing wave.  
The impressions were so short he couldn't capture one single memory, yet he felt…frustrated, panicked, helpless…vulnerable.  
He was eight years old again, hurt and exhausted on the floor of the GR, the gravity pushing him down, threatening to crush him…  
And his father, who didn't even turn around before he left the room and lowered the gravity. He never came back to check whether his son was all right…_

'_You know he only loves me, sees me in you. I am his rightful son, I live up to him. I am a true Saiyajin!  
I have seen death, destruction, leaded a life in agony and despair. He will never respect you like he respects me!' The Mirror-Trunks laughed cruelly. _

_Only now Trunks noticed, the voice didn't only come from the image in front of him but his head as well. _

_Those were his thoughts, phrased out by the creepy figure of his future self, as he now realized..._

_The image changed again, he saw the arrogant, dismissive face of his father…_

'_You are too soft Brat…look at you, wanting to be a fighter, afraid of hurting people', every word was like an ice shard being stuck into his heart…  
'You are a Saiyajin! Have you no pride?' Vegetas eyes turned so cold they actually made Trunks cringe, he fell to his knees, he couldn't take this hatred in his father's eyes, he was his idol, his hero, he was…_

'_Someone so 'human' like you will never be a true son of mine…' Mirror Vegeta sneered, turned and went away…_

_The echoes were repeated a hundred times, resonated and amplified, a storm of condescension being fired at him. _

_A soft touch on his shoulder made him look up, startled…He had felt a warm hand on his shoulder, squeezing it lightly, he felt better, relieved even…_

_He noticed he was a kid now; he was wearing the green fighting Gi his father had given him for his eighth birthday.  
He'd loved that suit, he thought it made him a stronger fighter, give him superpowers! Actually, it was shortly after his eighth birthday he turned super Saiyajin for the first time…_

'_Hey…'_

_He looked around…where was he? Who was talking to him? _

'_Don't be afraid, Trunks…You know these are just mind tricks…'_

_Trunks turned but nobody was there. He knew the voice, very well actually, but he couldn't place it…  
'How could anybody hate you?' The voice lost itself, it was like a soft wind, brushing his face, going through him…A warm feeling spread from his breast through his entire body, giving him a feeling of hope, happiness…peace. It was like coming home…_

_Everything was light and calm, he was still in complete emptiness, yet in the far distance he could make out a small building…he knew that place…_

_The person he needed, he was looking for, was there, he knew it…_

_He started running towards it, he was nearly there now! He was running faster…_

Trunks woke with a start, as if somebody had yelled at him or splashed cold water over him…

His body was covered in sweat, his blankets twisted around him like a straight-jacket.

Confused and disoriented he sat up and looked around. At first, he couldn't place where he was but then he recognized the familiar outlines of his room.  
He was at home, everything was alright.

Yet he felt rather peculiar, shaky…

He had had a bad dream, he remembered that much. But the harder he tried to remember the details of the dream, the faster the images disappeared.  
It was like trying to hold water in your bare hands…

Trunks got up and went to his bathroom, splashed cold water in his face.

Looking in the mirror, he saw how pale he was, his eyes were widened in fear and panic.

_What's going on with you man?_ Trunks reprimanded himself. It wasn't like him to get upset over a bad dream;  
it had been a long, eventful day, it wasn't surprising he had to get used to being back home again after all this time, so why did he feel so…awkward?  
A little sick, weak even… What are you? Afraid of pillows or something? He squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed his forehead with a frustrated sigh.

He felt the familiar soft pounding in his head which usually preceded a migraine.

Since it was still the middle of the night, he decided to forget about the nightmare and to get at least a few hours of proper sleep.

* * *

A few days later, Bra was on her way home from a party. She'd completely lost track of time and it was already three o'clock in the morning.  
Her parents would be so mad if they found out she'd been out that long, especially her father. He was always so worried about her, though he of all people ought to know she was more than able to defend herself against some drunken idiots…she was a half-Saiyajin after all.

It took her some time to unlock the door and she nearly stumbled into the shoe-shelf in the lobby after she managed to open the front door finally.

"Damn it…", she mumbled and tried to regain her balance. Maybe she'd been drinking a little too much….

All the more reason not to run into her father or mother, she'd never hear the end of it.

Slowly, without turning on the light, she made her way to her room, just wanting to sleep.

Bra heard the soft slam of a door being shut and footsteps on the ground.

She wheeled around and saw someone coming down the hall in her direction.

For the split of a second she thought it was her father, then she noticed it was just her brother and sighed in relief.

"For heavens sake, you sure gave me a scare…", she said. Trunks wouldn't lecture her or rat her out on her parents, ever.  
They had a very good brother-sister relationship and helped each other out a lot.

"I thought you were Dad…"

Trunks didn't say anything; he didn't even seem to notice her when he passed her.

Bra frowned in concern.

"Trunks? You ok?", she asked but he didn't answer. Only now, she noticed his blank expression, his eyes were empty, not taking in his surroundings…

She had seen him like this before but it was a long time ago.

When he was younger, Trunks had been sleepwalking whenever he was in mental distress. But it hadn't happened for years, why did it start again now?

Bra went to her room and slumped down on her bed, not even bothering to undress.

She was confused and worried, somehow. Trunks had been acting so strange ever since he came back.

She'd barely seen him lately, he was spending so much time in the lab or else, training with Vegeta.

The fight between her father and Trunks on the evening of his return hadn't been brought up by either of them, as far as she knew, yet it obviously had had some effect on her brother.

He was training like crazy which obviously pleased Vegeta, he kept saying that Trunks finally showed the right attitude…

Maybe it was just the year apart from each other, he had gained experience and therefore the change in his behaviour.  
Yet Bra was unable to shrug off the feeling that something was wrong. Terribly wrong. And now the sleepwalking.  
Should she tell her parents about it? But then they'd ask why she'd met him so late in the night…

Over these thoughts she dozed off and fell into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

**So, that was the first of two parts where a few changes will occur. I hoped you enjoyed it, let me know what you think.  
The next chapter will be up very soon, I promise.^^  
**


	5. Darkness Rising Part II

**Hello everybody!^^ I'm back and I have the second part of my (so far) favourite chapter with me.^^ **

**Thank you SO SO much for following and your incredible support, I really hope you'll enjoy the next chapter. **

**There are going to be a few revelations about our Charactes we think we know soooo well.  
Really curious what you think about it.;)  
The idea of the story is to follow (more or less) closely the DBGT-Storyline, yet with the story _behind_ it, if you know what I mean.:)**

**I especially enjoy the Vegeta-Scene in the end. I looooove Vegeta. More like: I love Vegeta and Trunks Scenes, they're just like the most amazing father-son couple there is. As you might have noticed, Vegeta is kind of the third main-character in this story.**

**For those who are concerned about the Yaoi-Comment in the first chapter:  
Yes, there are going to be _slight_ yaoi scenes. Don't worry though, I'ts not gonna be cheesy or anything.  
It's more the...bromance line I'll follow here.;) But more about that one in later chapters. I assure you, you won't be disappointed.**

**Well, I don't want to bore you with my narcisstic author comments, here is the new chapter! **

* * *

"….you are 24 years old, don't you think it's about time to get a REAL Job? I mean its fine to train teens and everything, but you can't possibly live off that, and…"

Goten rolled his eyes and tried to ignore his mother's monologue.

He'd regretted his decision to accompany her to West Capitol the minute they'd boarded the plane.  
Since he hadn't seen Trunks for more than a week and she had plans with Bulma anyways, he'd thought he might just as well go with her instead of flying to CC later on, on his own.

Usually he got along with his mother just fine…well, if there were other people around, that is.  
But being confined to a small aeroplane for more than an hour was just…exhausting.  
Sooner or later Chi-Chi was bound to start complaining about her favourite subject, namely his Job at the youth-centre.

Starting off as a high-school project he'd founded a martial-arts group at the West-Capitol Youth-Centre and been offered a full-time position there after graduating six years ago.

Not the kind of career his mother approved of for one of her sons, obviously…

She kept bickering about it whenever she got an opportunity.

"Well, obviously I can…" he hissed, forgetting about his plan to just ignore her completely.

"I mean, there is nothing wrong with that, I know how much this…uhm…job means to you, but you could always do that in your free-time while you study something _useful_ like…well…"

"In my _free-time_? Mom, I have three groups five times a week, it's a full-time Job and actually I do make enough money so what's your point? I am NOT Gohan, I don't want to study and be stuck to some office all day long.  
I do what I like and what I'm best at, so could you just give it a rest?"

Chi-Chi didn't respond to that, but folded her arms and pursed her lips. This surely wasn't the end of the story…Goten thought.

And sure enough:  
"Don't you have any ambition? I hoped Trunks'd have a better influence on you; he's so ambitious, a CEO at his age, I mean…"

"Yeah, right. And being a goddamn Genius and inheriting the family company has nothing to do with it, right?"  
Goten couldn't help himself. "Besides…" yet he didn't go on.

"Besides what?" his mother inquired, shooting him a daring glare yet her son didn't reply.

_Besides, he hates the goddamn job, _Goten thought but he knew better than to say that out loud.

It'd just raise too many questions and his mother was bound to tell Bulma about this and then, Goten knew for sure, his friend would literally kill him.

"Never mind…" Goten shrugged and sighed in relief when he saw they'd finally reached their destination.  
"We're there. Give it a rest Mom, I am not Gohan, I am not Trunks and I never will be."

He got off the plane as fast as he could and Bulma, having seen them arrive, came down the lawn to greet them.

"Hey Chi", the blue-haired scientist greeted the friend and hugged her. "Goten, Hi. I didn't know you'd be coming too. Come on in, then. Can I get you something? Coffee? Tea?"

"A tea would be great, thanks" Goten said and closed the door behind him.

"Is Trunks at home? I haven't seen him for ages" he asked when he'd sat down on the couch in the living-room and Bulma put a tea-tray down in front of them.

She rolled her eyes at him.

"Yeah, me neither." She said. "I guess he's in the Lab; he spends an awful lot of time there, lately. Judging how much I've seen him lately he might just as well still be out in space…"

The expression on her face was a mixture of irritation and worry which didn't go amiss neither Goten nor Chi-Chi who asked:

"Bulma, dear, are you all right? You seem a bit tense…"

"It's nothing…" Bulma sighed and brushed a strand of her hair back just the way Trunks did whenever something was troubling him.

"It's just…he's been ever so reclusive since he got back and I have no idea how to approach him." She shrugged and smiled at them, though it wasn't a very happy smile.  
"Having one Vegeta to deal with is hard enough, but two of the kind in the family…I'm really glad you came, Goten, you are the only one he really talks to and you ought to try and distract him.  
I never thought I'd say that, but…it's just too much, he really ought to take a break from work once in a while…"

She seemed to be really concerned and Goten narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

Bulma complaining about her son working too much? That was _really_ unusual…

"Well, I'll drag him out there if I have to. Not the first time" he winked and got up.

"See you later, then."

* * *

When he reached the lab Goten was surprised to find the door locked. That was weird; Trunks really didn't want to be disturbed. Being the only one who had an all access pass to his friend's lab, it didn't bother him much though; nevertheless it underlined Bulma's point of him being more reclusive than usual.

He typed in the password, the door slid open and he stepped into the huge entrance hall.

It was completely dark in there; only the stand-by lamps from the various computers and machines blinked in a regular rhythm and broke the darkness in the enormous hall where Trunks kept his machine prototypes or equipment too huge to be stowed in the actual lab.  
The black haired Saiyajin searched for the light-switch for several seconds. He'd tripped over so many wires and cables before, that he wasn't fond of crossing the room in complete darkness.

"Trunks?"

Though he was quite familiar with the older ones lab he still found the atmosphere in there quite eerie, creepy even. The humming of the huge generators, the clicking of the machines and the beeping lights made him feel rather uncomfortable…

He stepped into the research-area where Trunks' main computer was obviously busy processing data; the symbols and cryptic signs rushing over the screen made his head spin and he was unable to understand how Trunks could possibly look at that stuff all day long without going crazy.

Notes and sketches bearing the friend's unmistakable and illegible handwriting were scattered all around the room. Curious what the older one was working at he peered at the notes.

What the hell was a 'Bloods-Wave Generator' anyways?

He looked up when he heard soft music from the back of the room he hadn't noticed before, due to all the noise in the Lab.

"I should've known" he smiled to himself.

And sure enough, there was Trunks, sitting at his piano and playing a simple yet pleasant melody. His eyes were closed and he seemed completely absorbed in the music.

Maybe that required some explanation….

Trunks had inherited the piano from his grandmother who'd taught him how to play when he was just five years old. Since Bulma had always been very busy with her work and Vegeta wasn't really the type to babysit his son, the older Saiyajin had spent a lot of time with his grandparents when he grew up.

Bunny had really been into all kinds of arts, Goten remembered. There were beautiful oil-paintings and pottery all over CC, she had played the harp as well as the piano and that had affected Trunks more than he'd ever admit. She'd been thrilled when she'd noticed her grandsons' interest in music and he was exceptionally gifted at playing the piano. Since he was so much into science and technology this sentimental side of his was such a stark contrast and Goten could spend hours just listening to him play.  
Trunks had explained to the younger Saiyajin once, that music and mathematic actually had a lot in common so it wasn't as far-fetched a hobby as it seemed when the younger one had pointed out that seemingly discrepancy once. The older one really had a knack for spoiling beautiful things like music by comparing it to something as emotionless and boring like maths…

He had tried to persuade the older Saiyajin to play in public just once for years now, but the purple- haired had always refused vehemently. '_It'd just be too personal…' _he'd said simply and Goten had given up on this attempt. It was a real pity though…

"That's quite nice" Goten said and couldn't help grinning when Trunks actually flinched and nearly fell off the bench. He'd obviously been completely lost in his thoughts.

"Goten! Gosh, you nearly gave me a heart-attack" he gasped and brushed a strand of his hair back. "I didn't hear you come in."

"I called you like a thousand times…" the younger one defended himself.

The purple-haired rubbed his forehead distractedly. "How'd you get in, anyways? I thought I'd locked the door…"

Goten raised his eyebrows confusedly. This was neither the kind of welcome he was used to nor that he'd expected. Something was strange about his best friend today; he was very pale and had dark shadows under his eyes, as if he hadn't slept for days. He'd never seen the older one that exhausted before.

"I know your password, remember?"

It was actually quite funny that Trunks had never changed that password, seeing as Goten had typed it in just to annoy his friend.  
It was 'Moony', the nickname he'd given Trunks years ago and which the older one didn't like at all.  
He'd come up with it because the purple-haired reacted very strongly to the full moon, even for a Saiyajin.  
He tended to be rather irritable and restless when the full moon approached and had problems to fall asleep or suffered major migraines. Since the older one felt like this was a weakness he wasn't really fond of the nickname. Just like Vegeta he despised appearing weak and vulnerable, even in front of his best friend.  
Nevertheless, it fit just nicely and Goten loved to see the friends offended pout whenever he used that nickname.

"Right…" Trunks said and rubbed his forehead again. "What are you doing here?"

His voice was unusually faint Goten noticed and narrowed his eyes in concern.  
His headache really had to be pretty bad, yet he knew better than to comment on this.  
When the older Saiyajin was engrossed in a project he tended to forget to eat and drink and eventually suffered from dehydration and a hunger headache.

"Well, Mom is visiting Bulma and I thought I'd come along. It's your holiday after all and we haven't seen a lot of each other lately. I should've known better than to accompany Mom, though. She's quite a piece of work, I ought to know that by now..."

The purple-haired Saiyajin stared at him confusedly for several seconds.

"What?" he finally asked, still with this zoned-out, monotonous voice that started to freak Goten out.

"Which part of that didn't you get?" he teased the older one and took a seat beside him.

"Is it morning already?"

"Is it m….Trunks, it's three in the afternoon!" Goten said and stared at the friend incredulously.  
"Gosh, you're really out of it aren't you? Have you been up all night?"

"Couldn't sleep…" he shrugged. "Must've lost track of time…"

"Yeah, no shit…" Goten sighed in exasperation.

It wasn't easy being the best friend of a genius, he thought not for the first time.

Trunks was so confused and scatterbrained at times and tended to live more in his head than the real world.  
The black-haired Saiyajin couldn't even recall all the times Trunks had turned up at school without his backpack, wearing different shoes or no shoes at all, forgot which classes he had or flew off into the completely wrong direction until the younger one caught up with him and dragged him back.

It was still a miracle to him how the older one managed to keep up his image of being so organized and rational at work…

"Must be one hell of a project you're working on. I haven't seen you that out of it for a long time. By the way, what exactly _is _a 'blood's wave generator'?" Goten asked, remembering the notes he'd seen on Trunks desk.

"What's a what?"

"Stumbled across that expression in your notes. Back there" Goten said and waved in the direction of the lab.

"What notes?"

Goten frowned in concern. Something was definitely wrong with Trunks today; it was as if he wasn't really _there_, though he sat right in front of him. His eyes were so…empty; it was as if he wasn't really awake somehow, as if he was sleepwalking…

The younger one got up, grabbed the piece of paper from Trunks' desk and showed it to the older one.

"These notes" he said. Trunks stared at the paper for several seconds, his eyes narrowing in confusion.

"I didn't write this…" he said slowly and Goten tilted his head, if possible even more confused than before.

"It's your handwriting, though…"

"I…I don't remember writing this…"

"Are you _sure_ you're all right? You are really REALLY out of it today."

"Trunks? You still with me, man?" he asked when the older one didn't answer. Since the older one still didn't react and just kept staring at the piece of paper as if he'd never seen anything as fascinating as that before, he lost his patience once and for all:

"Ok, that's enough" Goten growled. "What the _hell's_ wrong with you?!"  
This was more than concern now, he was really scared. He'd never felt that awkward around his friend before, ever. "You're creeping me out here."

"I'm fine…" Trunks said, finally ripping himself out of his thoughts and there was the slightest infliction of anger in his voice.

"Like hell you are!"

"For God's sake Goten, give it a rest ok? It's just a migraine, so don't make such a big deal out of this."

"But…"

"Goten!" the older one growled warningly and his eyes turned green for a split second.

"No, you're not getting out of this that easily, glare all you want!" Goten flared up, grabbed the friend by the shoulders, shaking him violently. He didn't even care that this might actually worsen the friend's headache.  
He needed him to talk to him, he needed to get through to him somehow. "No way this is just a migraine. It's me you're talking to remember? So stop that Vegeta-shit and just spill it out!"

"I don't know!" Trunks shouted. "I don't know what's wrong with me, ok?!" He'd jumped to his feet and his hands were balled into fists. "I wish I did, but I have no idea and that is scaring the shit out of me!"

Rather taken aback by this outburst Goten had absolutely no idea how ro react.

"Damn' it…" Trunks muttered and buried his head in his hands. He swayed and leaned against the wall for support.

"Wh…what's going on?" The younger Saiyajin had gotten up as well.

"Jus' dizzy…" the purple haired slurred and Goten, noticing how Trunks legs suddenly gave in, pulled him to the floor with him. The older one rested his head on the friends' shoulder and tried to take a few deep breaths.  
Not knowing what else to do, the black-haired stroked his hair lightly.

"So much about being fine, huh?" he said and received a lopsided smile in return.

"'kay, you win…happy?"

"Not entirely."

"Maybe it's just a major jetlag or something…I've had a migraine ever since we got back here and there a huge gaps in my memory…I keep forgetting where I was or what I did for hours at a time…" Trunks confessed.

"Oh shit…" Goten murmured. "Is there anything I can do?"

The purple-haired shook his head slightly. "I'm gonna be okay. Please, don't tell my parents about this, ok? Mom is so worried about me as it is, I don't want to freak her out."

"But…"

"Please Chibi."

"Ok…" Goten agreed, though not entirely convinced this was a wise decision. He just didn't have the heart to argue with Trunks, seeing how miserable and weak he was. At least he'd admitted that something was wrong. That was a huge step for the purple-haired Saiyajins standards after all…

"Come on, you need to get out here, the noise in here'll just make it worse. How about you take a cold shower and I'll fetch us something to eat? You'll feel better afterwards."

"Maybe you're right." Trunks smiled a little. "Why does it always seem like you're the older one here. I'm supposed to take care of you, not the other way around."

Goten pulled the friend to his feet and winked.  
"You know, friendship actually means to take care of _each other_, Moony."

"Moony…" Trunks repeated quietly.

"Don't tell me you forgot about that as well?"

"That's it…"

"That's what?" Goten asked impatiently.

"The moon…"

"What about it?"

But Trunks didn't answer.

There was an expression on his face that the younger Saiyajin had never seen before…a strange mixture of savage triumph, of wild excitement...He couldn't tell why exactly, he just knew that something was terribly wrong seeing that expression. He was scared. Scared of Trunks, his best friend in the world.  
For the first time in his life he just wanted to get the hell away from him, as far away as possible...

* * *

At the same time, Vegeta was strolling through town, without a real destination in mind and not caring where he went. He did that every so often ever since he lived on earth and not even Bulma knew where he went or what he did.  
She recognized that even the prince of all Saiyajin needed a break from training once in a while and thought that he was just taking a walk for some fresh air and distraction.  
She was happy enough with the explanation, though it wasn't the whole truth actually…

Though Vegeta had gotten calmer over the years and his bloodlust had diminished, training in the GR just couldn't satisfy his saiyan urges. Every so often he just needed to see the shock and fear in the eyes of a stranger to feel mighty and powerful. It was in his nature, after all.

Of course, he never went so far as to actually hurt another living being, those times were definitely over and his wife would literally kill him for that, but knocking out petty criminals or showing a molester the right track would serve the purpose.  
Having accepted the rules on earth, he'd never hurt an innocent person just for the fun of it, but luckily, in a city as big as West Capitol, something always happened, there was so much criminality going on that it wasn't actually hard to find a suitable victim that really deserved some punishment.

Today however, he wasn't even taking in his surroundings, he was lost in thoughts.  
What was even more unusual, he was worried about his son.  
Maybe worried was too strong a word, but he was concerned.  
It was unusual because Trunks hardly ever gave him any reason to be worried or concerned.  
He was intelligent, reasonable and had overcome his irascible attitude that had gotten him into so much trouble when he was a teenager. Despite himself, he had to smile, remembering all the fights the boy had gotten into, all the risks he'd taken, his constant need to prove himself to his father …

Despite the general opinion, he DID care about his son and they'd struck up a close relationship over the years.  
He knew the boy, he could usually see right through him, knew when he was in distress, what was bothering him. He was so open-minded, so predictable. Too predictable, too emotional at times actually.

But now it seemed, this connection was disturbed, it was as if Trunks was shutting him out somehow…

The proud Saiyajin wasn't even able to phrase exactly what it was, that made him so restless, what he was even concerned about.

He just had this ominous feeling. Something had happened to his son, something was wrong…

Trunks had been training like crazy ever since he'd returned from the Space-tour, he spent so much time in the GR that even Vegeta had to remind him to take a break once in a while. Obviously that was completely fine with him, he'd assumed Trunks had been ripped out of his office routine and been hooked on training and fighting again, travelling through space with Kakarott and taken up the older Saiyajins attitude. He'd been happy to see that his oldest had found the thrill of a fight again, that he enjoyed going to his limits and beyond. That for itself wasn't the reason for his thoughts.

It was something else…

The boy had changed, there was something dark, sinister, about him now that Vegeta had never noticed before.

His eyes, usually so much like his mothers, so vivid and sparkling, seemed so cold sometimes, so distant…  
he knew that expression from himself, and it never meant anything good.

This coldness, the lively azure turning to shards of ice…

It made him shiver, thinking of those eyes.

It didn't happen often, usually during training and only lasted for seconds, but it was definitely there.  
At first, he thought he'd imagined it, but it occurred more often now, whatever it was, it was getting stronger…

But what was IT?

What was this shadow in his eyes?

Vegeta just couldn't tell…

* * *

**So? *Jumping up and down in excitement* Whatcha think?  
You might have noticed that the 'Moony'-Part was spoiled somewhat by Harry Potter, I SWEAR I didn't take it from there, I just think it fits so nicely. Trunks is always so mysterious, bright and beatiful on first glance, yet, being Vegeta's son, there just HAS to be another side to him. **  
**In a story from one of my most favourite authors he had the nickname 'Moonshine' and I just loved that. **  
**Besides, 'Chibi' as a Nickname for Goten is quite common, it's just...yeah well...necessary for Trunks to have one as well.;) **

**I hope you liked it and I'll see you all again on the next chapter of "The Golden Thread"**

**Enjoy your week guys. *Hugs you all***

**Bye, Nox**


	6. Hostile Takeover Part I

**I am soooooo sorry I made you wait for so long. Really really sorry.  
There are a lot of excuses ****yet I don't want to bore you with those, I can just promise that I'll update more often**.  
**Anyways, here is the new chapter and I really hope you like it.^^  
**

* * *

Waking up the next day Trunks was relieved to notice that, for the first time in two weeks, his migraine was gone. Instead he felt strangely light-headed, like there was a thick, impenetrable smoke filling his head, fogging his thoughts…it was the weirdest experience, yet he was too exhausted, too tired, to worry about it.  
He felt so peaceful, so relaxed…

He just lay there, thinking, trying to sort his thoughts.

He'd had that dream again, the same dream he'd had ever since he came back to earth and which always left him frustrated and angry…

At first, he hadn't been able to remember much of his dream, yet it got clearer, the emotions got stronger…

The young Saiyajin was unable to say how long he just lay there; it might have been minutes, it might have been hours. He was too tired to even open his eyes and check his alarm-clock;  
he had no idea whether it was still night-time or morning and found that he didn't even care…

Though he was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep, he found himself unable to calm his mind; he was afraid to fall asleep, to have that cursed dream again, confronting him with his worst memories, his deepest fears…

Something had woken him, yet he had no idea what that had been. When he finally managed to open his eyes, the whole room was spinning around him, and he quickly closed them again for the movement made him dizzy, nauseous.

His mobile started to ring and he remembered that this was what had woken him minutes (or was it hours?) before.

He just knew that it was Goten and he wished nothing more than to answer the phone, to talk to his friend…  
he'd know that something was wrong, he'd be there for him within seconds, as always.  
Yet, his phone lay on his desk on the other side of the room.  
Usually, that wouldn't have posed a problem at all, but today it might as well have been light-years away…  
he'd never make it to his desk.

He heard the door of his room slide open and soft steps on the floor.

"Trunks?"

It took him a few seconds to place the soft voice. His sisters' voice was so similar to his mother's that he kept confusing them from time to time.

"Hey Sleepyhead", Bra teased him and he felt her sit down on the bed beside him, stroking his hair lightly.  
Still unable to open his eyes, to even move, she had to come to the conclusion that he was fast asleep and he felt panic rising inside him. He felt locked in his own body, he wanted to tell her how he felt, that something was wrong, that he was scared…but he couldn't do it! He couldn't speak, he couldn't do anything!

He'd never felt so weak before, ever.

"Gosh, what the hell did the two of you do yesterday?" Bra laughed.  
"It's already afternoon, that must be one hell of a hangover."

_Hangover_?, he thought. Had they been out the day before? He just couldn't remember.

At some point his memory was just a large, black hole…  
The friend had visited him in the Lab, and he'd told him…something. He couldn't remember what, though…  
he'd tried to tell him what was wrong with him lately, he'd wanted to tell him everything, about his dreams, this ominous feelings he had, the feeling that something was controlling his every action, his every move…  
yet the younger one had been so scared as it was that he never got around to tell him the whole truth. Since he had no idea what the hell was going on he just couldn't phrase these feelings, these worries…

He'd felt dizzy, he remembered that, he'd nearly lost his conscience and from that point on everything was gone;  
he had no idea what they'd done the day before, he had no idea when the friend had left, what he'd done afterwards…

There was just one image, one picture:

The moon, nearly complete, it was just another two days till the full moon…  
That image showed bright and clear in his mind, he'd been outside, watching it….  
Just watching it? What had happened? What had he been doing after the friend left?

The fact that he couldn't remember anything at all made his heart race in panic and fear.

Finally managing to open his eyes he threw his sister a very confused, questioning glance and tried to put every question he wasn't able to phrase in his gaze.  
He didn't seem to get through to his sister, though…

Her face was oddly contorted, blurred…yet he was sure she was smiling compassionately.

"Can I get you anything? Coffee?" she asked concernedly to which Trunks shook his head ever so slightly.  
This small movement alone made his head spin uncomfortably again and he was unable to keep his eyes open any longer. They burned so bad!

"_You, _turning down a coffee? I thought I'd have noticed hell freezing over…"

Didn't she get it? Couldn't she see how bad he felt, that something was really REALLY wrong?

"Well, I guess I'll just leave you alone. Don't worry, I will tell Mom and Dad to just leave you alone today, okay?"

She'd long left the room when Trunks finally managed to whisper those four little words he'd wanted to say the moment his sister had entered the room:

"Bra….I need help…"

* * *

Bra poured herself another Coffee and sat down on the windowsill.

She'd taken that particular habit from her brother, who always chose this seat when he wanted to think things through, sorting his thoughts…

Finally, she understood this, the view was…spectacular, she'd never appreciated that before.

She felt strangely restless, yet she didn't really know why…why were things that complicated lately?  
Why was everything so confusing? In this 'crazy', abnormal, yet loveable family her brother had always been the calming influence, the one constant in her life, the one person she was really close to…  
But now, everything was so different. TRUNKS was so different.  
He'd changed so much she didn't really know him anymore…she thought and put sugar and cream to her coffee.

Before she could even take a sip of the hot beverage however, the phone rang and, rolling her eyes, she picked up:

"Capsule Corporation, Bra Briefs speaking. How may I help you?"

"Bra? Hi, it's Goten."

„Goten, hey, how're you doing?"

"I'm fine, thanks. Listen…Did you happen to see Trunks today?  
I tried to call him but he wouldn't pick up his phone and I just wondered…" he never finished that sentence but Bra noticed that he sounded very worried, that he tried for a casual voice and majorly failed to do so.

"As a matter of fact, I have. What the hell have the two of you been doing yesterday?"

She couldn't entirely ban an accusatory infliction to her voice and realised she sounded just like her mother.  
Trying to deflect she added: "I've never seen him so out of it, that must have been some serious partying.  
You could at least have asked whether I wanted to come with you…"

"Partying?" Goten cut her off. "We didn't go anywhere, I had to leave early to take Mom home and we've just been hanging out, training and stuff…why'd you think we were out?"

Taken aback by this, Bra frowned. That didn't make sense at all, she'd been sure her brother was just hung over, she'd seen him like that before…She'd just figured he'd crashed out drunk yesterday, seeing as he'd been fully dressed, jacket and shoes and everything, his balcony door wide open.  
If they had NOT been out, then where the hell had Trunks been?

Goten was a terrible liar, she'd know if he was just keeping information from her…

"Bra? You still there?"

"Yeah, I was just…I…yeah, I checked up on him. He was asleep though…More or less."

"More or less?" Goten inquired, now positively panicked.

"Goten, is there anything I ought to know? What's wrong with him? He'd tell you, of all people!  
What the hell is the matter with him?"

She heard a deep sigh from the older Saiyajin.  
"I have no idea…I just….please, do me a favour. Could you check on him again?  
I feel like something's…wrong" he finished lamely, like there was just not the right word for his uneasiness.

Bra smiled despite of herself. She'd never understand these two.  
This incredibly strong connection they had, those feelings they shared, that they always knew what the other one was doing, experiencing…it had to be because of them fusing so many times, the young girl thought.  
Yet, the intense tone of the older one made her feel even more concerned.

"Bra, please, I just know something's wrong. I can feel him…slipping away…I…"  
He sighed and she could actually visualize him scratching the back of his head like he always did when something troubled him. "I know this sounds stupid, maybe I'm just paranoid. I actually hope I am, but…just check on him again, ok?"

Bra nodded slowly, then, realising that Goten couldn't see that she said: "Sure, I'll do that. Don't worry…"

It wasn't just what Goten had said but the way he'd said it that had raised this panic in the young half-Saiyajin. She knew, he knew her brother better than anybody else and if he was so worried, there had to be a reason for that.

* * *

She opened the door to her brother's room and found him exactly the way she'd left him.

"Trunks?"

She sat down beside her brother and shook his shoulder slightly. No reaction.

She shook him harder, calling his name but he didn't react at all.

"Trunks! Wake up, please!"

The panic got the better of her; her brother wasn't reacting at all, he didn't flinch, he didn't make a sound...it was as if he was dead.

"DAD!" she yelled at the top of her voice. She didn't even think of using the phone, calling the GR, where her father was bound to be. "DAD!"

"What's with all the racket in here?!"

Vegeta had entered the room, wearing a really annoyed expression. Yet Bra didn't care about his glare at all, she was too concerned about her brother to care about her father's attitude.

"Something's wrong with him."

"Tell me something I don't know" Vegeta sneered.

"No, really! He doesn't wake up, no matter what I do!"

Vegeta's frown deepened, yet Bra couldn't care less. He leaned over her brother and shook him rather forcefully.

"Hey Boy, snap out of it!" Still no reaction and now Vegeta's expression changed from annoyed to deeply worried. The young girl had never seen him like that before.

He placed a hand on the young Saiyajin's forehead and took a sharp breath.

"He's burning up" he hissed. Only now Bra noticed the heat radiating from her brother's body.

How could she not have noticed before? A fever that high was very, very unusual for her brother, he never got really sick; he had the occasional cold once in a while, but apart from that he was generally pretty healthy.

"Call your mother. Tell her to come home straight away" Vegeta said and pulled the young Saiyajin up.

"She is in a meeting, I don't know whether…"

"Just call her!" the proud Saiyajin snapped and Bra, not used to her father talking to her like that, noticed that, for the first time ever, her father seemed to be scared.

She simply nodded, at a loss for anything to say, and grabbed the phone.

Vegeta pulled his unconscious son to the bathroom, took off his shoes and jacket and turned on the cold water in the shower. He had to try to cool the boy down, somehow.

He'd never spiked a fever like that, ever.

Was this the explanation?

Trunks must have known he was sick for a while, a fever this high didn't develop over night.  
Why didn't he tell them anything?  
Despite himself he had to smile ever so slightly. That was definitely one of the bad characteristics his son took from him, their pride that made them deal with everything by themselves, on their own, never ever admit that something was wrong...

Was this the reason for his strange behaviour lately? Was it just a virus he'd picked up in space?  
He just didn't know, he didn't even know what to do next, his wife was way more experienced when it came to Saiyajin Sicknesses. She'd learned quite a lot about them developing their suits and the medical tanks.  
That's why he needed her here, she'd know what to do.

The ice cold water seemed to have some effect though, after a few minutes Trunks seemed to regain his consciousness, his eyelids fluttered and he opened them slowly.

"Trunks? You with me?" Vegeta turned off the cold water and forced the boy to look him in the eyes.  
There was this dark shadow again, this glance that kept freaking Vegeta out, this…

_Hatred_. It was pure hatred, he now realized…

"Vegeta…." Trunks hissed coldly, on the brim of consciousness.

Now that was odd, Vegeta thought. His son hadn't called him that ever, he'd always been 'Dad' or 'Father'.  
He had despised that at first but now he was shocked how badly it struck him to be called that.  
And his voice was so cold, so…_evil_.

This wasn't Trunks voice. This weren't Trunks eyes. This just…wasn't Trunks….

The prince shuddered and the panic constricted his chest, made it hard to breath.

He was going to loose his son…

He might already have and picked up on it too late.

Before he could even reply the boy had fallen unconscious again…

"For God's sake Bulma!" he hissed, "Get home, I need you here…"

* * *

**That's that so far, the next chapter's gonna be out of the ordinary, kind of. We'll experience a journey through Baby's memory and then things are really gonna come into action.  
Just two days till the full moon...Now that's really gonna be interesting, my most favourite chapter's coming up soon and I'm really looking forward to greet you all at the next chapter of 'The Golden Thread'.  
Time for Baby to enter the scene, huh?  
Please let me know what you think, what you liked, what you didn't like and we'll see each other at the next chapter. :)  
**


	7. Baby's Story

**_Hello everybody.^^ _**

**_Thank you for your reviews and greetings to all the new readers.:)  
_**

**_Today, we'll take a trip down memory lane and I hope you'll like this chapter. In German, there's a saying which roughly translates: The calamity before a storm...or something like that.;)  
This chapter is exactly what this is about._**

**_Read and review guys.^^_**

* * *

_It was so peaceful…it felt like an eternity since he'd felt so free, so happy…_

_He took a deep breath. The air smelled fresh, salty; the sea had to be close by. _

_He felt the soft wind caressing his face, brushing through his hair. Slowly he opened his eyes and the view was…incredible. A pale purple sky with two suns, one glowing dark orange, the other one bright yellow, casted shadows and bright spaces of warm light in the mountainous area…_

_Trunks looked around, absorbing the picture, taking in everything. _

_The environment looked so healthy, the bright green patches everywhere…._

_There was so much life, so much nature here…_

_This wasn't a dream, he realized. He could feel, taste…He was completely conscious of what he was doing, what he was feeling, seeing, experiencing. This was a memory. A very vivid memory…_

_Yet this was not one of the planets they'd visited on the space journey. He'd never seen this planet before…_

_This was someone else's memory…he had no idea where this certainty came from, how he could be so clear and rational when he was obviously dreaming…_

_The image changed, it blurred out somehow. The scenery changed…_

_He found himself in a city, people buzzing around, going on their day-to-day business. _

_It was a huge city and resembled West-City a lot. A rich, ascending industry, large manufactures; he could feel power, progress, general satisfaction…_

_How did he know all these things, these details? Whose memory was he sharing?_

_What was he supposed to see, to learn? _

"_The market's never been better…", he heard someone say nearby. "We might actually be able to go into the interspacial export this year…" _

"_About time to…I thought the government was too scared to take further steps. Bunch of morons if you ask me…What threat could there be?"_

"_Tell me about it…"_

_Before he could even look for the source of the voice, the image changed again, it was a blurring, colourful whirl that sucked him in. _

_Somebody wanted to show him something, he'd figured that out by now. But what was the point? What were they trying to show him? _

_This time, not just the scenery, but the whole atmosphere changed.. _

_He'd been happy before, peaceful..._

_Now he felt anxious, stressed, panicked…_

_He was at some kind of meeting, there were long rows of tables, people sitting stiff in their chairs, a spokesman at the front who was very, very pale and kept wiping his forehead nervously. He cleared his throat and started to speak in a very constricted, trembling voice: _

"_We gathered knowledge that…" He cleared his throat again. The audience stiffened even more, as if they knew that they were about to hear very, very bad news. _

"_We've gathered knowledge that the Saiyajins have…taken an interest in our planet, our economy…"_

_There were sharp intakes of breath, the atmosphere got so cold, and Trunks, being an in-corporal bystander shivered due to the emotional cold that rushed across the room. _

"_We're afraid they are going to attack…" _

_Trunks was swallowed by a dark whirl, thrown into a complete different scene. _

_The sky was on fire, though it was night time, the two bright suns had been replaced by two round, gleaming moons, two threatening orbs which gave enough light to light a horrifying scenery….dozens and dozens of Capsules fell from the orbit, causing massive destruction when they hit the ground. He could see black-haired warriors stepping out of it and turning instantly into giant were-monkeys, growling, roaring and destroying everything that got in their way. _

_The people didn't stand a chance, their weapons were nothing compared to the enormous strength of the Saiyajins. Huge Ki-balls destroyed whole armies in seconds, the attempts to stop these monsters were…so futile…so desperate and pointless._

_Trunks screamed; he wanted them to stop; he didn't want to see this. He screamed his heart out, he wanted to do something, he wanted to stop them…yet this was just a memory, there was nothing he could do, he was condemned to just watch this nightmare…_

"_Do it Son…"_

_A man, very similar to his father was standing in the doorway of a small, dark entry-hall. _

_Two people were backing away from him, hit the wall and stopped, trembling, their eyes widened in fear. One was a woman in her middle-twenties by the looks of it, she was trembling and had her arms held tightly around a small boy of about four years…her son obviously. _

_They were so scared, yet the mother tried to pretend she was brave; she shielded her son from the two people in front of her. _

_The man who so much looked liked Vegeta, except he had a beard and a moustache. Though he'd never seen him before and his father never talked about him, he knew, this was his grandfather, King Vegeta…_

_The boy next to him, Trunks realized, was his father…_

_It was the strangest experience, seeing his ten-year old father…._

_This had to be one of his first missions and Trunks could see his father's struggle, his inner fight. He wanted to make his father proud, he wanted to show him that he was a true Saiyajin, yet he couldn't cast that blow that would end the life of the two people in front of him._

_He seemed insecure about what to do, his hand lifted about to shoot the deathly Ki-Ray…_

_He hesitated, shot a glance at his father…_

"_They are at your mercy son…what are you waiting for?" King Vegeta asked impatiently. _

"_Look, these are just insects…they are not worth anything, it's their planet we need. So, do it!"_

_Vegeta faced the mother who was still trying to protect her son, begging for mercy…_

_Vegetas' expression changed. Instead of doubt and insecurity, now there was…anticipation, pride…_

_Trunks knew this expression so well, he knew what his father was about to do…_

"_Dad, No!" he shouted, forgetting completely about the fact that his young father couldn't hear him, couldn't even see him.. "Don't do it! They are innocent! Please, don't…" _

_He was cut off when the Ki-Ray his father shot went right through him and hit the young mother. He could hear their screams, their despair…and then there was nothing. Nothing at all. Everything went blank…_

"_Father…" Trunks thought…"How could you do that? You…."_

"_YOU ARE A GODDAMN MONSTER!"_

_The next episode of this memory was very, very different from the ones before…_

_He was in a tank, he didn't need to breath, the fluid he was floating in was supplying him with oxygen, he absorbed it through his skin…it was as if he was an embryo, a living being that was about to be, he felt…secure, protected. _

_He wasn't just watching a memory as a mere bystander, he WAS the person who's memory he shared…_

"_Baby…" _

_He heard a thin voice with a begging, desperate sound to it. _

"_Baby, you are…"_

_He opened his eyes slowly. He was in a tank which stood in a giant lab. From the distant, he could hear noise, like thunder, he could hear explosions, the ceiling crumbled and bricks fell off the wall._

"_You…you have to live…" _

_An old man was crawling towards him. He was injured, barely alive…his sole aim seemed to be to get to the tank, no matter how…_

"_You are our last hope! Get away, grow!" The eyes of the old man shone with a frantic determination. "You'll come back! Avenge us!" _

_He felt his heartbeat accelerating. The old man made some adjustments on the keyboard, he felt adrenaline rushing through his veins. _

"_One day, Baby…." His vision blurred, he couldn't keep his eyes open any longer._

"_You will come back and you will destroy these disgusting Saiyajins! For us! For your people! Please…live!"_

_The man had put his hands to the tank despairingly, now he collapsed, right in front of him. _

_Trunks felt so much hatred rushing through his veins; it was like a toxin, infecting his brain…_

_He had only one goal: Destroy those monsters! The ones who'd done that to his folk, the ones who'd destroyed his home…_

_He'd destroy Vegeta, no matter what!_

_When he woke up he felt…weird. He felt alone, there was no noise, no…nothing. _

_He was floating through the endless depths of space, merely trying to stay alive. _

_He felt so cold, so tired…_

_There was nothing around him except this all-consuming darkness. _

_Everybody he'd loved, everything he was used to, his homeplanet…everything was gone. _

_He was alone…_

_If he could just find someone whose body, whose power he could share! Anybody!_

_He wanted to die, he wanted to end it all. There was this one thought that kept him going, this one thing that kept his heart beat, his attention focussed. _

_The one thought that kept him alive was…._

_Revenge! Pure-cold Revenge!_

* * *

Vegeta paced the room back and forth, back and forth, over and over again…

It was already late at night, nearly morning even…

Though there was no logical reason to do so, Vegeta had chosen to monitor his son closely in case anything changed about his condition.

His wife had confirmed his suspicion that Trunks suffered from a virus and that this was the explanation for his strange behaviour. Though she was obviously worried about him and the fever, she'd seemed relieved that this was 'just' some kind of illness. She'd put him on a broad spectrum of antibiotics and had been checking up on him every hour. Since his condition did not get worse, this seemed to be the right way to go.

Yet Vegeta wasn't convinced entirely. The boy had never gotten sick before, this had to be some hell of a virus…he just had this strange feeling that he'd missed something crucial, that there had been a sign were he could've stopped all this, where he should've interfered…

It was a stupid, moronic thought that didn't suit him at all, and it was this inexplicable thought that made him so restless…

"No…"

Vegeta turned around, facing his son. He'd been talking in his sleep the whole day, he seemed to have bad dreams…

Yet this time it was different.

"Dad, no! Don't…"

Now that was interesting, Vegeta thought. The boy was dreaming about him?

"Trunks?"

He shook the boy, trying to wake him up. His face was screwed up in suppressed fury, he was restless and trashed around in his bed.

"They are innocent! Don't…."

"Trunks, snap out of it!" He shook him harder and ever so slowly the boy opened his eyes.

Their were glassy, obscured…

"What did you do?" he asked in a very small voice. "They didn't harm you, they were….how could you kill them?"

Vegetas eyes narrowed in concern. His son obviously was delirious from the fever, he had no idea what the kid was talking about.

"Trunks, you have a very high fever. You are delirious. I'll get you something so you have a dreamless sleep, ok?"

He turned to leave, yet when he reached the door Trunks said something that made his heart stop for seconds, that made him freeze on the spot. He'd never thought he'd hear something like that from his own son, his own flesh and blood, the one person he'd changed his life for…

"You goddamn Monster…"


	8. Hostile Takeover Part II

I am soooooooooooo sorry for making you wait this long. There are no words to describe how sorry I am and all I can do is promise that I'll never keep you waiting for such a long time again.

One part of the problem was, that I had the hardest time writing this chapter and the one that lies ahead. Those are the main chapters of the story, the ones I had in mind before I started writing and updating the story and the chapters the whole story evolved upon. And I wanted to make sure that they are just the way I wanted them to be. They deserve it.;) And I didn't want to publish them before I was a 1000% happy.

As an apology and as a special gift for your patience, I've updated an extra-long chapter and I really hope you like it.^^

Welcome to all my new readers, I hope you like the story and please please please let me know what you think!

You've waited long enough, there is a time for a few words but this is not it.

For know, have fun reading a new chapter of "The Golden Thread"

* * *

The next afternoon, after returning from work, Bulma was on her way to her son's room to check his temperature again and give him his medicine.

For all the use she was at the office at the moment she might as well have stayed at home.

Her clients had every reason to be unsatisfied with the director the last few days;  
she just couldn't stop worrying about her son. Neither he nor his father nor any other Saiyajin she knew had ever gotten this sick before, ever…except for Goku when he'd had the heart-virus he'd caught on Yardrat. Only a very small number of illnesses could affect a Saiyajin that severely.

Bulma hoped that her son's condition was finally improving.

Since his fever at least didn't rise any more she was quite optimistic that he was recovering from this strange virus or whatever it was. They'd have to find out exactly what it was though; she already had taken a few blood-samples but the results were always inconclusive…

The most unusual was that, according to all the tests she'd run, he was in perfect health, there was nothing wrong with him….no virus, no strange blood cultures, no reaction from the immune system…no nothing.

So he ought to have shown some improvement by now, there ought to have been some changes in his condition…

When she entered the room a cool breeze rushed over her face and she shivered.

The balcony door stood wide open and it was rather chilly. Now that was really, REALLY weird…

"Trunks?"

Bulma looked around the room, which was deserted…

There was no sign of her son whatsoever, neither in the room nor in the bathroom.

Instead of freaking out completely and loosing her head like she usually did, the green-haired scientist went unusually calm…

There had to be a reasonable explanation, he wouldn't have just left without telling her or Vegeta….

Hell, he couldn't even leave! He'd had a fever of a hundred and eight when she last checked on him. Not even a Saiyajin just walked around with a fever of a hundred and eight!

Since the whole room started spinning around her she sat down on her son's bed, took a deep breath and rubbed her temples in order to sort her thoughts.

There were a dozen of reasonable explanations; there was no reason for her panic that threatened to overwhelm her.

Maybe he'd just needed some fresh air after lying low for such a long time.

Maybe he was somewhere in the house…

There was no reason to freak out completely just because her son wasn't in his room.

Ignoring the ominous feeling in her chest she rushed down to the kitchen, peered into the living room, keeping an eye on the windows in case he was out in the yard, catching some fresh air…

Her panic increased with every second yet she willed herself to stay calm, reasonable…

When exactly she'd developed this over-protectiveness, this….absolute need for control, to know at any times what her family was doing, she didn't know.

Funny enough, it majorly applied to her son; she was always worried about him, always wanted to make sure he was alright, happy, save…

There was a simple reason for her increased worry: When something was troubling her daughter, when she didn't feel well, when there was anything wrong, she always told her or Vegeta. They had a very good relationship and sooner or later her daughter would tell her everything, there were no surprises, no unforeseen events.

With her son, it was completely different. He took a lot after his father and had developed a tendency to solve everything on his own. He wouldn't tell them if something was wrong, he wouldn't tell them if he had a problem or didn't feel well. Until a few years back, their relationship was different, they'd been really close, she'd been able to see right trough him…

That had changed majorly over the last few years. The older he got, the more he resembled her husband…so secluded, so…proud and stubborn.

Sometimes she felt as if she didn't know her own son anymore and that thought was scaring the hell out of her.

Yet there was something strange about this whole situation. He'd never have left just like that, ever. However screwed-up their situation might be, there was no logic explanation as to why her son would've left just like that….

Lost in her thoughts she'd eventually ended up in front of her son's lab. Though there was no apparent reason what he should be doing down here, it'd be foolish not to check the lab so she entered.

There was no sign of the purple-haired Saiyajin either, the lab was deserted.

She was just about to leave when one of the monitors caught her eye.

'Data successfully transmitted' the text on the screen read and the software had been activated three hours ago.

So Trunks had come down here, he'd been here and….she had no idea what her son had been working at, what kind of data he'd send to hell-knew where…

He'd made sure the encryption was unbreakable. Now THAT was really odd. Why such a bother?

Now was not the time to think about that, she decided, there were more important things right now. She turned to leave when she noticed her son's cell-phone on the floor…

Rather confused she picked it up.

He NEVER went anywhere without it, ever…

Everything felt rather….unrealistic. She could feel her freaked-out heartbeat, her sweaty palms…

Having wasted enough time she whirled around and left the room.

There was nothing SHE could do but she sure as hell knew what she had to do.

* * *

The door of the GR slid open and the gravity turned down automatically.

How many unpleasant and slightly humiliating experiences it had cost her until she'd figured THAT one out, she couldn't even remember…

"What now?" Vegeta growled and turned around, rather annoyed like he always was when she interrupted his training.

Catching her eyes, he frowned ever so slightly, his eyes narrowing in concern.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

People might think of the proud Saiyajin as uncaring and at a loss of any kind of people-skills and they'd be right…but he could look right through her, he always knew when there was something wrong, when something troubled his wife.

She shook her head ever so slightly and brushed a strand of her hair back.

"What's up?"

"Did you happen to see Trunks today?" Bulma asked.

Vegeta's frown deepened. "No, why?"

"Well he's….gone" Bulma replied distractedly.

"What do you mean, gone?" The black-haired Saiyajin hissed. "He's been unconscious for two days, he can't have gone anywhere in his condition."

"Don't you think I know that?" the green-haired shot back. "Don't you think I don't know that he doesn't just walk out off here with a fever that high? Fact is, he is NOT in his room, he is NOWWHERE in the goddamn house!"

Bulma rubbed her temples and took a few deep breaths. She couldn't let her temper get the better of her right now…

"Listen, would you please look for him?"

Since the proud prince didn't reply she added: "Vegeta! Would you please look for him RIGHT NOW?!"

"He's diminished his energy, he could be anywhere…" Vegeta said, talking more to himself than his wife.

"I don't care! Then you'll just have to look anywhere!" Her temper got the better of her, yet still Vegeta seemed to be lost more in his own thoughts than his wife's outburst.

"Yeah right…"

"Please, Vegeta, I'm really really worried that something bad has happened…this doesn't feel right."

Vegeta nodded curtly and left the room without another word.

"Thanks…" the green-haired sighed though her husband was already out off earshot.

"Don't you come back here without him…."

* * *

All in all, it wasn't really one of Goten's best days.

He was teaching his last class for the day and It had been one of the hardest days ever; he

hadn't been able to concentrate at all and actually left his oldest student and good friend, Taylor, in charge to watch the younger ones.

Bra had called him back and informed him that Trunks was really sick and that this was, obviously, the reason for his more than strange behaviour.

That in itself would've been confusing enough; a simple virus really didn't explain these changes, these black-outs the older one had told him about and which he'd kept a secret like he'd promised. He'd never break a promise he made to the friend…

Yet he still wondered whether he should…Vegeta and Bulma knew him, they might know what this meant…He didn't even care about his friend's attitude for once, he just wanted to make sure he was okay…he decided to talk to Bulma this afternoon, after work, when he was going over to CC.

"Goten?"

The finger-snapping right in front of his eyes brought him back to reality and he noticed Taylor was standing right in front of him. By the looks of it he'd called his name several times before.

"Sorry, did you say something? I was kinda lost in my thoughts…"

"No shit…" the younger one sighed. "You're awfully distracted today. Is everything all right?"

Goten scratched the back of his head distractedly.

"Yeah, I think so. I was just thinking about…" He didn't go on since it was impossible to tell anybody what was going on inside his head, how confused and helpless he felt..

"Well it doesn't matter really, what's up?"

Taylor gave him that unique grin he had and that the black-haired half-Saiyajin just hated…

He always felt like he was being x-rayed when the younger one showed that particular smile…

"You were thinking about Trunks, weren't you?"

Quite taken aback, Goten merely blinked stupidly.

Goten knew, Taylor had had a crush on the older Saiyajin ever since they'd first met when Trunks, too, had a trainer position in the youth-centre a few years back and he'd never missed any opportunity to let the purple-haired know about that…It had never bothered Goten much really…he always considered it quite funny to watch the older Saiyajins reaction to those attempts.

Actually, he was pretty sure Taylor wouldn't have visited the classes as regularly as he did if it hadn't been for Trunks. The better for him, he thought. Taylor'd had a very troubled youth and had been in a bad condition when he first came to the youth centre…and he'd trusted the older one, he'd told him everything and slowly, the little, insecure, drugged-up boy had become one of the best students of the new-founded martial-art class.

"Ah, don't get all worked up…", the blonde boy smiled. "There is only one person in this goddamn world that get's you off track like that. Seriously, how close are you, anyways?"

He was spared an answer when his phone rang. "S'cuse me", he said and picked up.

"Who is…"

He was interrupted harshly: "We have a problem."

Rather taken aback from this introduction he tried to place the voice and it took him a few seconds to realize that he was talking to Vegeta.

The proud Saiyajin had NEVER called him before, he wasn't even sure whether Vegeta had ever called anyone before. Whatever the reason, it had to be serious.

"…What's the matter?" he finally said slowly and received an annoyed hiss from the other end.

"Trunks is gone and I can't feel his Ki but he's told me once you can feel each other's Ki even when we others can't so do you have ANY idea where he might be? I don't think we have a lot of time to waste."

Goten felt numbed and everything seemed to slow down around him. His nervousness turned into ice-cold panic and he felt his heartbeat race to a level where it actually hurt.

The thoughts were rushing through his mind so fast he couldn't concentrate on even one of them at a time. The only thing he knew for sure was that this was bad. Very bad. He tried to calm himself, thinking rationally.

What Vegeta said was true, he and Trunks could feel each-other's energy signal all the time, they had a special connection that allowed them to feel what the other one did at all times, even when nobody else could.

He'd figured this was a side-effect of them fusing so many times, it was bound to leave a mark on them.

Now that the older Saiyajin mentioned it, he realized that this was what had made him so restless all day. The connection was broken, he couldn't feel Trunks' Ki at all, there was just…an empty space in his chest. That had never happened before, ever…

"I have no idea, I…" he swallowed hard and tried to steady his voice which didn't sound like his at all. "He isn't there anymore…"

A rush of thoughts and emotions rushed over him and he got so dizzy momentarily he slumped against the wall and ran a shaking hand through his hair. He couldn't have described to anyone how he felt at this moment, he just knew that he had one thing to do: He had to find Trunks, nothing else mattered right now!

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Vegeta hissed from the other end of the line.

"Doesn't matter…" Goten said. There was really no time for explanation right now. "I'll find him."

"You better do", Vegeta snapped and hung up on him.

Goten stared at his phone for a few seconds, feeling numbed and rather as if he was standing beside himself…So he had not just been paranoid, he had not been overprotective; something terrible had happened and if the proud Saiyajin even called him and asked for help, the situation had to be worse than he'd thought.

"Taylor, take care of them. I have to go" he heard himself say in a strange, zoned-out voice.

"What's going on? Goten, what the hell has happened?"

Before the other one had even finished the sentence, the black-haired Saiyajin had rushed to the balcony and took off.

* * *

"_Truunks….wake uuuup…."_

The purple haired woke to a strange sing-song voice that sounded kind of familiar…

Yet he was way too tired to open his eyes, he just lay there, breathing in, breathing out calmly…

"_Wake up…You've spent enough time sleeping, time for us to get into action…"_

Us? Action? Trunks had no idea what this was all about, he felt so…free, free from his body, immaterial and…save? It was the weirdest experience.

He inhaled the rich forest air, the earthy, lively smell…..'Wait a sec…' Forest?

He forced himself to open his eyes and found himself lying on a clearing, the soft evening wind rushing over his face, through his hair; he heard the soft swoosh of leaves, a calming, peaceful sound….The sun had nearly vanished behind the horizon, turning everything red and gold…

Unlike the last days this was a pretty pleasant, calming dream…

"_A dream? Now aren't you a naïve person….this is not a dream…."_

The purple-haired tried to sit up and found himself unable to do so…He couldn't move a muscle, he couldn't do anything….he felt his heart-beat speeding, his eyes were searching the place for something familiar….it was all so…unrealistic, dreamlike….

This couldn't be happening, this couldn't be true…what the hell was going on?

"_Really now, for a smart boy you tend to be pretty dumb sometimes…." _The voice snarled. _"I guess that's your Saiyajin-Genes showing….stupid, moronic apes they are…."_

"Who are you?" Trunks hissed. "What do you want from me?"

He could barely recognize his own voice, it was so far away, so distant. He could hear his voice, yet it felt so….disconnected from his body. He didn't feel like he was saying those words, he could feel his mouth forming the words, yet he wasn't the one who said them…

"_Oh my sweet one…you already gave me everything I want…Almost…" _

He heard a cold, evil laugh…a laugh that lacked all kind of emotion, an inhuman, maniac laugh…

"_And as to who I am….don't play dumb on me Trunks. You know who I am. You knew it for a long time." _Every single word was followed by an increase of pain in his chest and his forehead; it felt like ice shards were stuck in there, one by one, slowly, torturing…

"How…" Trunks pressed through his gritted teeth, holding his head in agony, "How did you survive? How is that possible? What the hell do you want?!"

"_Didn't I make my purpose pretty clear already? Didn't I show you where I came from and to what purpose?" _Now the voice sounded angry, furious and the pain in the young Saiyajin's chest increased. _"You've seen what you goddamn apes have done to my planet, my people! For years, centuries, I've travelled the galaxies, lived as a parasite and latched myself on minor creatures just to stay alive. And then….one day, Dr. Mu found me, he knew who I was and nurtured my strength….yet he made a very bad mistake. He tried to use me…he tried to abuse me for his own purposes…"_

These mood-changes were disturbing…now Baby's voice sounded sad, the coolness had vanished and he could feel actual emotions like they were his own. Unable to move, held down by the pain and shaking all over, all Trunks could do was listen, waiting, hoping that someone would come to help him…

He tried to power up to give his father or Goten or anybody a signal and found himself unable to do so…his body wouldn't react to the orders his mind tried to give him…

These futile attempts were followed by this cold laughter again…

"_It's too late for that now you fool…." _Baby said, sounding rather amused. _"So, where was I…ah yes… found me and put me into this tank for his research, to mere my powers…he found out about my purpose by reading my mind and he told me that all Saiyajins were destroyed…that there was no way I could ever avenge my people….those were the hardest days of my entire life…my mission couldn't be fulfilled, I failed my destiny, my sole purpose of living…." _

Trunks felt his heart cringe in fury, loneliness and despair….those were Baby's feelings, Baby's experiences….how was this possible? How did they become one mind, one body?

"_But then you and your friends came along….and everything changed. I was severely weakened, true, but my life-source was re-established when I found that all hope was not yet lost. That there were still Saiyajin out there…so I latched myself on your spaceship, travelled with you, waiting for my time, my chance to overtake one of you. And that time came….Do yo remember how you came to check the space ship and scratched your shoulder on that edge? Finally I had my chance. You can't imagine my joy when I found out that I didn't just infiltrate a powerful body which powers I could use but I actually found the son of my arch-enemy…the son of Vegeta…" _

Blinded by the pain and on the edge of fainting, blurred images kept rushing through the young Saiyajins mind…now everything made sense, everything fell into place. How could he have been so blind, so….stupid?

"_The only risk I had to face now was not to get captured…not to have my plans disturbed that you so obediently carried out for me….but as I expected, your family, especially Vegeta, couldn't care less about you. Nobody noticed what we did, what we were working on. And you played your role very well…being too stubborn, too proud to tell anybody. Just like your father….and finally I am there, I don't need your goddamn brain anymore, all I want now is your power! So stop resisting me! Succumb to me and let us finish what we started!"_

The pain got stronger, it was unbearable, indescribable….he just wanted it to be over, he wanted to end it right here, right now…death would be a relief…

"I don't succumb to anybody!" he shouted with all his might. "I am a Saiyajin and I'd rather die than become your slave!"

"_YOU are not a Saiyajin. You are too soft for that, your father was right about you all along. He was right to deject the human race, these minor, weak creatures with all their emotions and morals…He is a monster, and he HAS to be destroyed!"_

"He changed! He isn't like that anymore, he changed and fights for the earth and it's inhabitants!" Trunks shouted, holding his head in agony that felt as if it was being cut in half.

"_Now did he….really? Haven't I shown you enough proof of he really is? What he's done to you? What about the time he let himself willingly be controlled by Babidi because he got so sick of his life as loving husband and father? How he fired into a crowd where your mother was, not even caring whether she was hurt or not? He will never change…and now you have the chance to take revenge. To destroy him like he destroyed you….let him see what you are capable of…"_

Trunks breathing stopped for what felt like minutes….the thoughts were so consuming, the memories so clear….meanwhile Baby kept whispering instructions in his ear, his mind was conflicted and slowly, ever so slowly, his energy to fight the enemy off diminished.

"_So why isn't anybody here? Not your father, not your so called best friend…Nobody…There is only you and me…."_

"WE are not a team!"

"_And that's where you are wrong….I have read your mind and your heart Trunks…nurtured from your soul…..you are mine now and there is nothing you can do!"_

The last thing Trunks heard before everything around him went black was this maniacal, icy laughter that got louder and louder, deafening every other noise around him….

* * *

So? Watcha think? Like it? Don't like it? Let me know and I'm looking forward to meeting you all at the next chapter of the "The Golden Thread"

Bye for now. Yours and forever Nox-Light. :) :) :)


	9. Baby Unleashed

Hi Guys!^^

Wow, I really got you addicted, didn't I? That's as much a compliment an author can hope for. You are the best, thanks for the reviews, thanks for reading and continually telling me to update more faster.

I'll take that as a compliment and I am sooooo glad, that you like this story so much.

The only apology I can offer is, that I wouldn't wan't to post a chapter that is not up to my expectations. I want you to feel their feelings, to see the pictures. To really LIVE the story the way I do.

We will travel a long journey together, this story has merely just started and I already have a prequel in mind...;)

I hope you will enjoy the next, and surely not the last, chapter of: "The Golden Thread"!

* * *

"This is ridiculous! Completely ridiculous!"

Vegeta was angry. Really angry. Angry that he cared so much, angry for being so worried…

He rushed through the skies, going somewhere, anywhere, in the hope of catching any signal from Trunks at all, the slightest sign, an inkling of where he had to go…

He was angry for not having reacted sooner. He had known something was wrong with his son, even before he'd gotten seriously ill, before he was unable to answer his questions, before it was too late….

He hated being so helpless, he hated the feeling of panic increasing in his heart and that this panic had led him to ask for help.

Goten knew his son better than anybody else and he was his last hope for finding his son in time. In time for what? That was what troubled the proud prince the most. This whole situation was a completely new experience for him. He'd never really questioned his actions, he'd never had this 'what if' thoughts before, this bad conscience. What if he'd talked to his son sooner?

What if he'd asked him what had happened up there instead of starting a fight? His son was as secluded as he was and for the first time, it bothered him. He should have known he'd react that way, he should have known that he'd hurt him…but why hadn't Trunks talked to them, to him, to his mother? Why hadn't he told them what was wrong, that _something_ was wrong? Didn't he trust them? Didn't he trust him, his mother, his sister….anyone?

He sighed deeply, stopped in midair, tried to sort his thoughts…

Yes, there was one person his oldest trusted, and he'd contacted this one person as a last attempt. Goten…

The son of his former arch-enemy, the son that so resembled his father in looks and behaviour…the one person _his_ son trusted, told everything….

Flying through the skies, trying to find any signal of his son, the slightest increase of energy, the slightest trace of him, he started reminiscing…

He'd never really appreciated the friendship between the two young Saiyajins, he'd wanted his son to defeat the offspring of his enemy, to overthrow them…and he'd succeeded in it. His son had beaten Goten in both world tournaments; he'd gotten so strong, so tough…

Just like Kakarott had said the evening they'd returned, he hadn't gone easy on his son. He'd been strict, set the expectations high and often enough watched his son fail those expectations.

The only way people learned to pick themselves up was to let them fall first. This was how he was raised, he didn't know another way, and his son's success had confirmed his experience.

Yet he hadn't been able to destroy this strong connection the two young Saiyajin shared, that golden thread that connected the two of them since the day Goten was born…

Why he'd been trying to separate the two of them he wasn't able to explain, even to himself…

At first, it had been his pride, his attitude, that just forbid a friendship between two classes of his race…it had been replaced by his projection of his failed attempts to beat Kakarott and he'd at least wanted his son to defend the family-honour…but even that wasn't the reason anymore. It was something else…

He still remembered the day the boys had met for the first time…

* * *

_It had been one of those get-togethers he'd been forced into by Bulma. A few months after Goku had died in the fight against Cell, a few months in which he'd gotten to know his baby-son…_

_Trunks had staggered towards the newborn, just having learned how to walk, his steps insecure, shaky, the way a baby walked…but he'd been so determined. _

_He'd approached the younger one with this unique expression of his…this one look he had, even then, that particular expression of his he hadn't inherited from either him or his mother…That look he had when something was worth his interest, that there was something he had to do, no matter what…he'd approached the younger one, they looked at each other, wide-eyed, curious….and then he'd touched the younger one's forehead, smiling, and turned around._

"_Mine", he'd said. "I'll protect him."_

_Vegeta still couldn't suppress a smile, thinking of that day. This seriousness, this…infantile honesty._

_He didn't even know how to describe it. Bulma and Chi-Chi had been all like "Aww how sweet…" yet Vegeta had known that this went deeper, that this connection was stronger…_

_The way those two infants had looked at each other, this…wordless understanding. _

_He'd never seen something like that before. _

_Yet the reason he'd called the younger Saiyajin earlier that day was more recent. He didn't even know where this memory had come from, why he'd remembered such a minor detail…_

_It was the last tournament all of them had entered together. It had been the tournament where Kakarott had left, training the successor of Majin-Boo, and everybody he'd left had been devastated. Chi-Chi had, as usual, collapsed on the spot and Bulma had taken care of her. He wasn't really bothered by it, he'd always had his problems with the younger woman, she was so…unnerving, hysterical…_

_Yet Bulma appreciated the friendship so he wasn't going to complain. As long as he didn't have to deal with her more than absolutely necessary it worked for him…_

_Not letting his own thoughts, his own emotions, control his behaviour, he'd just focussed on the more interesting fights that lay ahead, that were namely Goten, Gohan and his own son._

_It was then that he'd noticed the whispered conversation between Gohan and his older one:_

"…_.take care of it…" Trunks had said, the most worried look on his face. _

"_Gosh, thank you Trunks….you know how hard this is for us…especially for him."_

"_Gohan…", pretending not to look Vegeta noticed his son placing his hand on the older one's shoulder, squeezing it affectionately. "I will find him, I know where he is, I will take care of him. Don't worry…"_

"_Yeah right…."Gohan looked deeply troubled. Vegeta wondered what the two of them were that afraid of; Surely the boy was old enough to look after himself. _

"_He will be fine, I promise. Just trust me, okay?" _

_The purple-haired smiled and was about to take off, when Vegeta stopped him: _

"_Where do you think you are going? You have a tournament to finish!"_

_Trunks had thrown him the most irritated, confused look. _

"_Do you really think that matters? I don't care about the tournament. Never did, never will. Goten needs help and I won't spend my day here instead of being there for him! So, if you will excuse me…" with that he brushed Vegeta's hand off and left. _

* * *

_Much later that night, morning even, Vegeta was still awake, too restless to sleep, thinking things over. He'd always appreciated those early hours in the morning, the only time this city was asleep, the only time it was calm, peaceful…He'd never really adapted to this busy town, this liveliness, this…stress. _

_Just sitting there on the windowsill, absorbing the picture of the city waking up, he heard steps on the floor, a cupboard opening…_

_Who the hell was awake this early?_

"_Morning…" he said, entering the kitchen, and Trunks actually flinched and nearly dropped the cup he was holding. He looked very exhausted and his glassy eyes told the proud Saiyajin that he'd obviously had had a few drinks. _

"_Gosh, you nearly gave me a heart-attack…", he sighed and ran a hand through his hair, pushing a button on the coffee-machine. "You usually up this early?" _

"_Still up is the better phrasing. How come you are?"_

_Trunks was very, very pale and his hands were shaking badly. Something odd must've had happened, something bad…he seemed restless, confused…_

"_We got back like two hours ago. I couldn't sleep, so…" he shrugged and didn't finish the sentence, rubbing his temples distractedly._

"_Are you all right?" _

_The purple haired looked up, locked eyes with his father…he seemed to be confused; confused that Vegeta seemed to care about him. Did he appear that uncaring usually? Was it such a big event that he asked his son whether he was ok, when he obviously wasn't? _

"_Fine enough, thanks…" the young Saiyajin answered and sat down on the windowsill, taking a sip of his coffee. "Dizzy though…preparing for a bad hangover tomorrow." _

_Vegeta raised his eyebrows surprisedly. If there was anything at all his son could have done or said to prove the point that something was SERIOUSLY wrong, it was this statement. He'd never have admitted he was drunk if it wasn't the perfect excuse for not telling what REALLY bothered him. He definitely knew the boy way too well. Since the purple-haired was obviously not willing to say what disturbed him, he decided to just play the game. He wasn't the type to prise information out of anybody._

"_Gosh you are such a lightweight. Don't worry, all Saiyajins are. You know our body-chemicals better than I do…" Vegeta shrugged.. "But you DO know you have a coffee-machine in your room? Why bother coming down here?" _

"_Didn't wanna wake up Goten…he needs to rest…" _

_Vegeta sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Don't you think you worry a bit too much? He's old enough to take care of himse…"_

"_Don't go there" Trunks cut him off, throwing him the coldest look the proud Saiyajin had ever seen. "Sorry…I didn't mean to be rude but…you don't know him, you have no idea how bad he takes this. He loves his father and he's left him just like that. AGAIN! He couldn't care less about his family. He can't do that to him…" The last sentence he'd said more to himself than his father, looking out of the window, rubbing his forehead. He'd probably been right about the hangover. Those were the first signs of a major migraine which Vegeta knew his son tended to get on a regular basis._

"_I see…" the black-haired turned to leave, his son obviously wanted to be alone. It was then that a thought came to his mind. "Just out off curiosity…" he said, facing the younger Saiyajin._

_The purple-haired looked up, a rather annoyed expression on his face._

"_Yeah?" _

"_How did you know where he was? He had his energy diminished, he obviously didn't want to be found, so…"_

_Trunks frowned slightly, obviously thinking pretty hard. "That's a pretty interesting question…" he replied. "I don't know why, but for some reason we always know…We can never hide from each other, ever." _

"_Interesting…" Vegeta said slowly and was about to leave when, this time, Trunks said: _

"_Just out off curiosity…" _

_He tried to pay him back, that was pretty clear, but the sound of Trunks' voice had changed and that intrigued the older one._

_He turned around, raising an eyebrow questioningly. _

"_Why have YOU never left?" _

_Vegeta felt like he'd been slapped right in the face, he was at a loss of words…_

_This question, the tone of his son's voice…not judging, not cold, just…neutral, curious even; He'd never expected a question like that from his son and was surprised how hard it struck him._

"_That…" Vegeta cleared his throat, brushing a hand through his hair. "That is really a dumb question Trunks." He noticed that his voice was very distant from himself, unfamiliar. _

"_Is it?" Trunks looked at him with these intense, x-raying eyes…his mother's eyes, his sister's eyes. _

"_Where would I go to? My family is here, this is where I belong..."_

* * *

Vegeta was ripped out of his thoughts rather harshly, stopping in midair.

He was sure he'd felt his sons' Ki…it had been only a short impression, so short he might've had imagined it. Yet it was the only clue he had so he had to go for it.

The signal had been weak, too weak…  
without further hesitation he headed south as fast as he could.

* * *

The proud Saiyajin reached a rather large island a few miles off the coast of South-City.

There was a large, busy town on it and in the horizon he could make out a huge industrial facility with a high satellite-device looming over the apparently long deserted radar-station.

For some reason this area seemed pretty familiar and when he spotted the CC-Logo, he remembered that this was an old outpost of his wife's company.

He flew slowly over the premises, looking for his son. Why the young Saiyajin should be here was inexplicable to the proud prince, yet at least there was some connection; he couldn't be entirely wrong.

And sure enough, after several minutes, he spotted the outlines of a person standing in front of a complicated looking control device…

He'd never felt that relieved before and let out a huge sigh…

"If your goal was to scare us all to hell you sure succeeded" he growled darkly and crossed his arms in front of his chest. Trunks didn't even flinch, didn't turn around…he didn't react in any way, he just stood there with his back to his father, his head down and also having his arms crossed in front of him like he was wearing an invisible straight-jacket.

"What were you thinking, leaving like that?" Vegeta spat and felt the confusion and panic rising in his heart again. WHY couldn't he feel Trunks Ki, what was wrong with the boy? It was impossible to lower the Ki that low. He HAD to feel it when they were standing right in front of each other.

Pushing the question aside, he decided it was most important to get the boy home safely, everything else would be settled there.

"You've been seriously ill the last few days! You really shouldn't be out here. Come on; let's go home, you need to rest."

Vegeta rummaged in his jacket-pocket for a plane-capsule. There was no way he'd let his son fly home in his condition. It was a miracle he'd even made it this far. And on their way home he HAD to find out what was wrong with the boy even if he had to beat the answers out of him.

"Tss….now isn't that sweet…" the young man said in the coldest voice ever. This wasn't his son's voice, it was so….evil, so inhuman…"What has become of you? One could really be tempted to think that you actually care."

Ever so slowly Trunks turned around, a strange smile on his face, his eyes glowing bright blue.

Vegeta shivered and stepped back a step involuntarily.

"Has this fever melted your brain or what?" he hissed, trying to keep his voice steady. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Now who has gotten soft…this is surely not the Vegeta I remember…"

This cold smile that never reached the young man's eyes was so creepy…The older Saiyajin swallowed hard at a loss of words. For the first time in his entire life he was scared of his son. Or better, what appeared to be his son…

"You are still pretty messed up. Let's go home, your mother needs to check you out. Or better yet, we'll get you straight to a hospital."

Even though Vegeta wasn't really fond of human Doctors, because they had no idea how a Saiyajin immune system worked, there really was no other way. They should have considered this much sooner…It was better to collaborate with those idiots then loosing their son.  
He threw the capsule on the floor and turned to enter when a Ki-Ray passed him so closely it actually left a cut on his face, destroying the plane in a huge explosion.

"HAVE YOU COMPLETELY LOST YOUR MIND?!" Vegeta shouted incredulously and wiped traces of blood from his cheek. "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS ABOUT?"

"You are not going anywhere. We will settle this here and now!"

The expression on the purple-haireds' face was so….crazy, distorted…his glowing eyes put a stark contrast to his pale face, the cold smile seemed to be engraved in his face.

"Are you looking for a fight boy?" Vegeta growled, his panic expressing itself in anger and fury. It was his only way to cope with these feelings. "If so, let's find a suitable place."

Trunks grinned, took to the air and before Vegeta could do or say anything, he'd shot a few well aimed Ki-Balls in every direction.

Shielding himself against the energy, the older Saiyajin couldn't believe what was happening.

Did his son really just destroy the whole city? Had he really gone insane? There were people living in that town, he'd just….no, that couldn't be true, he was having a nightmare, this wasn't real, it couldn't be….Trunks would NEVER do something like that, ever!

When the dust cleared and he could open his eyes again he noticed that the only thing that had survived the outburst was the radar-tower his son had been standing in front of.

Everything else had disappeared, turned into rubble….thousands of people must've died and the young Saiyajin had not even hesitated for a second….

"Seems pretty 'suitable' to me…nobody around to interfere, right?" The young man landed in front of him, the most evil smile on his face.

"YOU are not Trunks….he would never do something like this." Vegeta hissed, his heart beating so hard in his chest it hurt; he couldn't think clearly, he couldn't breathe. "Who the FUCKING HELL are you?"

"Funny. Really funny. And there we thought this was exactly the kind of person you'd wanted your son to be. Cold, uncaring…the perfect Saiyajin. You should be proud, Vegeta…Isn't this who you've wanted him to be all those years? Why you've treated him like scum and put him through this hell?"

For a moment, everything went completely calm, all the noises around were drowned, all he could hear was his freaked out heartbeat, the blood rushing trough his veins. All movements seemed to be in slow motion…

The horrible part of this accusation was that a tiny part of this was true.

He felt like he was looking in a mirror, being confronted with his former self, the evil, cold person he used to be. It was an altogether terrible experience…

"Who are you?" he whispered coldly.

"Well, I think it would be too much to remember every planet you've destroyed, to remember all the civilizations you have slaughtered…"

From one second to another the person in front of him changed completely, the azure-blue irises turning bright red, the purple hair turned to snow white and strange red marks appeared at his temples like tattoos of lightning bolts….

At the same time the Ki spiked up and an orange Aura appeared around the impostor.

Something triggered a long lost memory in the proud Saiyajin and he remembered where he'd felt this particular Ki before…

"Tsufuru….you're from Tsufuru aren't you?"

"Ooh, look at that. Not as dumb as I thought you were, are you? But then again, if you were, I presume you wouldn't be able to walk and talk at the same time…" The Tsufuru laughed, his Ki rising. "You have destroyed my home planet, you have brought terror and pain on my people…And now I want revenge! Having started with your son, I will destroy every single Saiyajin that is still out there and you will stay alive just long enough to watch this goddamn planet, that ignorantly granted you damn apes asylum, evaporate."

The black-haired Saiyajin completely lost it, powering up to Super-Saiyajin without even realizing it. Having started with your son? What was that supposed to mean? Was he really too late? Was Trunks….he didn't dare to voice his thoughts even in his mind…

The power overwhelmed him, he was powering up too fast yet he couldn't have cared less. He would make this monster pay for what he'd done….

"WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU DONE TO MY SON?

* * *

So? Liked it? Personally, I do. I LOVE this chapter. I love those Vegeta/Trunks Things.

What do you think? I didn't want to start my holiday having you stuck on a cliff-hanger.

Waaaay too tired to answer all of you individually but I will at the next chapter.

I will NEVER abandon this story, trust me. I've been writing Fanfiction for ten years and this is my personal favourite. Apart from one other, I have to translate...

I LOVE your reaction to this story, I hope I got you hooked? 'Cause we'll spend some time together. This story, the sequel of the story and my favourite one.

Let me know what you think about this chapter.

Until then, Sayonara.^^

Bye and good night...Nox


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